Year Three
by l Hypocrisy l
Summary: It's their last year of Tōtsuki and only eleven students remain. Erina and Soma are forced into a partnership that will change their relationship forever. Is there a possibility for some romance? Or will they end up killing each other before the year ends? Soma x Erina the main focus. Sorina
1. Prologue

**Year Three**

_Prologue_

When Nakiri Senzaemon, the _Food's Demon King_ said that ninety-nine percent of all Tōtsuki students were going to be used as "sacrificial stepping stones" to polish the remaining one percent… everyone knew he wasn't lying; and those that were foolish enough not to heed his words were definitely not among the few standing in front of him today.

The elderly man with long spiky hair, a full beard and mustache was overly intimidating that day, but the look that he shared to his final group of culinary students was anything but. Smiling from ear to ear, he eyed them warmly. They were _indeed_ the best of the best… that one percent. Out of the one thousand first years of the 92nd generation… only a measly eleven had remained.

They were lined up, shoulder by shoulder, facing forward in a military sort of fashion, dressed neatly in their uniforms in his moderately large office. From left to right, they stood based on rank from eleventh seed to first. That was one of the key differences to start with in their final year. Everyone had a rank so they knew how their peers saw them. Based on performances in class, tournaments, and Shokugeki's, they would either move up or down depending on the result.

As of now, in the eleventh spot stood Ibusaki Shun. He was one of four Polar Star Dorm students that made up the final eleven; it was ironic how the Polar Star hostel was deemed an ancient relic, a washed up home for the lowest students of Tōtsuki yet for this generation it made up the majority of the remaining students. Shun stood as straight as he could, his long curly brown hair hanging messily over his face, hiding his eyes from Senzaemon. The Tōtsuki director need not see his eyes to judge his character; anyone that made it this far had been put through enough. Dubbed _The Prince of Smoke_, Shun had earned his right to be among the eleven.

The Nakiri elder's eyes' then made their way to Sakaki Ryōko, the tenth seed. She was another student from the Polar Star Dorm, whom he would have not figured to make the remaining bunch. Long purple hair about waist length partnered with an amazing bust and a pretty face, Ryōko had surprised many along her way. She was out to prove not only to herself but everyone out there that with determination and hard work, her salt-water cooking style could be one of the best in the world. However, most of her motivation came from the promises she made with Yoshino Yūki and Marui Zenji at the end of their second year. Ryōko and the remaining students of the Polar Star family promised to achieve it all for their fallen friends. Yūki especially, was always on her mind.

Standing ninth was the voluptuous and ever so confident Mito Ikumi. The ganguro queen of meat always knew she would make it to this point. However being ninth was not what she had envisioned. Having been humbled by her eventual red haired crush, she learned just having the best materials did not necessarily make the best dish. It's how you used your resources, and how you make them compliment one another that will lead you to success. The boy with the peculiar scar above his left eyebrow had opened her world, and thus unbelievably, helped her reach this point. But it was not just the red head; Konishi Kanachi had played a big role as well. As much as she would want to deny it, the black pompadour haired man had become a friend and a guide to her. Helping her blend her skills with meat in the style of Don R's, Ikumi plans to graduate Tōtsuki and further the positive reputation of donburi dishes at the school.

Bright and bubbly as always, Tadokoro Megumi was proud to be among the last eleven. Ranked eighth, her journey to the summit probably seemed the most unlikely out of all the students in her generation. She stood proper and held her head high, knowing she put everything she had into reaching this spot. She again, was able to keep up with _him…_ Since his arrival at the school the spiky haired son of Saiba Jōichirō had turned her fortunes around. She went from the girl that was laughed at and unreliable, to one that her family and friends all the way back home can speak about with pride. She had also grown not to lean on the Yukihira genius, developing her own confidence and skills. Her fish handling abilities paired with her kindness and love that was felt through her dishes became popular news around the school and made her a lovable figure for all the new students. She was still the clumsy and often brainless girl she was when she first came to Tōtsuki, but with the guidance of her red haired idol, Megumi realized she had potential for so much more.

Kurokiba Ryō had one thing on his mind. Move up from this seventh place rank so he could be closer to the one who vowed to show him the world. The silver haired beauty that had calmed the beast inside of him was running away… the distance between his cooking and hers were now starting to show, even though at one point he was the better cook. The messy haired red-eyed boy that was once referred to as a _Mad Dog_ was now finally starting to understand just what the Nakiri daughter meant when she said "the vast world of gourmet food." Everyone here was a perfect example of that, all having his or her own styles and specialties. And this was just the tip of the iceberg. He needed to catch up to the Denmark native and fast… for the farther he slipped away from her, the more the beast came out. She was his Belle, and without her guidance the dark haired teen would fall back into madness. Strange... he knew. How she had come to have this power over him, he had no idea.

Known as simply the Tōtsuki princess' aide for the longest of times, Arato Hisako had dutifully followed her cherished idol into the final cluster of students. Much like Ryō before her, she had similar thoughts on her mind. How could she have possibly let the enemy get so close to her life-long friend! This was unacceptable! She had to improve upon her rankings and fast. Though she had to admit, over the years, the Yukihira cook had slowly started to win her respect with all his impressive feats. Also after finding out his lineage at the end of last year, Hisako looked at him slightly different. No longer was he a cook from the base, he had some root of novelty, even though he never bragged nor cared for that. However, her opinions on that man mattered not. All that counted now was to keep him away from the prized Nakiri jewel.

Nakiri Senzaemon now turned his gaze upon the final five. As he watched them keenly, he noticed a gap difference. These five were on a completely different level from the previous six. In fact, he wondered if the rankings past this point even mattered. Just standing before them, they were all emitting an aura of skill beyond their young years.

Closing out the top five, Hayama Akira stood as calm as ever. Senzaemon noticed the look of ease he had compared to the ones he gazed upon before. In fact, he looked so at ease that it seemed as if his mind was somewhere else completely… If only the director knew. Akira's mind wasn't really all here at the moment. In fact, his thoughts continued to drift back to just a few hours before he arrived in Senzaemon's office, where he and Shiomi Jun had a heart-to-heart conversation. She told him starting today, he would have to devote everything he had towards the school. There was no more room for him to be wasting his time and energy on her. It sounded like she was pushing him away, but he knew she wanted what was best for him… but was it really for the best?

The Italian wonder-kid, Takumi Aldini showed no signs of pressure or fear. In fact, out of all the students he seemed to appear the most determined. The fourth rank Tōtsuki student had much to fight for this year. There were so many subplots involved with his journey. From his brother, Isami dropping out because the family restaurant at home needed help, to the Yukihira genius ranking above him… He vowed he would be number one at Tōtsuki when their final year was up. He was even so sure that he made that statement to his rival in front of everyone after the last day of classes. However much like in Yukihira fashion, the red head did not hear a word Takumi said and it lead to an embarrassing proclamation from the Italian chef.

_Third huh?_ Thought Alice, a small smile gracing her delicate features. She was fine with this… only two spots short of number one with a whole year left to go. Plus she knew the difference level in cooking and the points separating her from being ranked number one was as thin as a strand of hair. She looked to her left and her smile widened. After her first semester at the school, she had known for a long time she would be facing down with the two in front her. She knew it the day she saw them standing together at the Hellish Training Camp, they would be the only ones to oppose her reign. She was going to be beat them, it was that simple… she had the skill, the ability to produce, and the creative intentions to pull it all off. Tōtsuki and the Nakiri family will have a new princess, and the one they call Yukihira will be humbled at the end of this year. She gave her grandfather a wink, and he returned her playful gesture with a smile.

Nakiri Senzaemon looked upon Yukihira Soma with much delight. He knew from the moment he tasted the boy's dish during the entrance exam, he would be something special, so he took the risk and accepted him even though he received a failing grade. And when he witnessed the sparks of challenge between his granddaughter and the scar-faced boy at the entrance ceremony, he knew then and there he made the right decision. He would be the man to push his granddaughter to a whole new level. Would he have guessed that Soma would push not only the little princess, but his other granddaughter as well and also practically everyone standing before him? Only someone from the future could see that far ahead. But he was definitely pleased. For a second, thoughts of whom would be in front of him raced by if he had not forcibly accepted the talented cook.

There really wasn't much to say about second place. As Yukihira Soma saw it, it just means he's the first loser. However he still kept a grin on his face. He was confident and cool, like always. Did he foresee he would be sandwiched between the two Nakiri dolls and ranked second in the whole school entering his third year? Yeah, knowing Soma he probably did, for he never saw himself as anything but the best. This however did not mean he was arrogant. He was humble, kind, and welcoming to all. Always the first to defend those being picked on and worked his tail off to get to where he was today. But he couldn't deny the selfish need of wanting to be first! It was the competitiveness in him. He also needed to prove to his old man he was one of the greatest cooks in the world, and the day of him surpassing his father was growing ever so closer. To his savior, the annoyed look to the person left of him made him feel slightly better and it was this which was the cause for the grin on his face. Since the day she met him, she'd always try to remind him of his position and that he would never reach the likes of her. And now here they were, shoulder by shoulder… He poked his elbow out, nudging her in the side as if to remind her how close their proximity, and better yet, their ranks were. This caused an immediate scowl and glare on the face of the woman ranked number one.

This action did not go unnoticed by the Tōtsuki director. He smiled knowingly.

Outwardly, Nakiri Erina appeared cool, stoic, and a bit smug. On the inside however, there were so many battles going on with her emotions. It's true that she was unsurprised at the fact that she was number one entering their final year. She expected nothing less. But she hid her excitement and her annoyance. She was excited and happy that she was first because she wanted to show her grandfather she was definitely going to be the best in Tōtsuki. She wanted to show Hisako all the hard work they did together amounted to success, even if people thought they were just exceptional with everything. She wanted to jump for joy, party, and do all the other foolish yet seemingly fun things that normal people do… But she couldn't. She was not normal. She was _the_ Nakiri Erina, the one that was "gifted" with "God's Palate." She was not afforded these silly things, at least well in public. She had a reputation to uphold.

Her annoyance on the other hand stemmed from the man next to her.

Who would have guessed that some lowly boy from a special-of-the-day shop would eventually become her greatest threat to the Tōtsuki throne aside from Alice? Add that on top of the fact that he turned out to be the son of her role model, yeah life sure had a cruel way of playing jokes. She would of actually even praised him for all his achievements had they not started off on the wrong foot. Come to think of it, she would have even offered him the chance to join her faction. Erina inwardly smiled, imagining the thought of sitting on Soma like a chair and ordering him around. If only he was more like a trained dog… the thought brought her back to one of her first impressions of him. He never understood her nobility. _Just like a stray dog who doesn't understand a gem's value… _This was her year. She would make him learn they were not equals. She would once and for all, remove this plebeian from her sanctuary.

After glancing over them one last time, Nakiri Senzaemon felt it was now his time to speak. He was going to introduce them the challenges of their final year.

* * *

**Authors Note**: Bam! And that right there is the Prologue! I got so many ideas for this Fanfic and I'm just bursting with excitement. Also, I think this is the first Shokugeki No Soma Fanfic on the site! Hahaha! Oh man so excited! I saw on the FB fan page that they had created a category! Really excited! Hope to see other Shokugeki No Soma works out there as well.

Also yes, there will be romance in this Fanfic. I've been thinking of a whole bunch of different stuff and have settled on four couples for this fic. Hahah. I won't reveal three of them, but I will let you know the main one, Erina x Soma. I absolutely adore Megumi but I personally prefer Erina as the main romantic interest for Yukihira. However don't worry, I got some ideas for our little Megumi! I think... Haha.

Read and Review! Let me know what you think!


	2. Take Me For A Joyride

**Year Three**

_Take Me For A Joyride_

Two weeks into the first semester of their final year, things had calmed down quite nicely. And though this was a good thing, the professor was ready to shake the class up once more.

Nakiri Senzaemon sat at the head of the room as he watched his students pile in one by one. They all took their seats, chatting and what not excitedly about their recent activities and what they were probably going to cook today. He had put them through a lot, testing them on all things from textbook spices to levels of tenderness and such. He enjoyed pushing them to their limits. But all the things they did were just a test to gage their abilities. The real challenge started today.

It was quite the shock when the young cooks first realized he would be their teacher, and rightfully so. The Tōtsuki director had never taught a class at the academy before, and the truth was he never felt the need to. He had handpicked his staff and knew they were all overly capable to teach and form the young. But this year, these third years… he wanted to shape them himself.

He felt the personal need to have a hand in their growth. First and most importantly he had two of his granddaughters present this year. And they were not just any granddaughters, but two of the most promised young talents in the world. He wanted nothing to stop or deter their growth, and so he put the responsibilities of their learning onto himself. And then he had that boy, Yukihira Soma whom he had handpicked; he was like the diamond in the rust. Went unnoticed by most but he knew the talent, and when he noticed the last name, he knew the heritage. Without a doubt, he was the splitting image of a young Jōichirō.

Snapped out of his musings by the approaching Arato Hisako, the bearded man gave the young girl a welcoming smile.

"Ms. Arato, class starts in a few minutes. Is there something on your mind?"

"Yes Nakiri-sama," Hisako began giving a slight bow of the head. "Erina-sama wanted me to let you know she will be arriving a few minutes late today. She had a mandatory meeting to attend but promises that this will not happen again."

"Hmm." With the nod of his head he acknowledged the tardiness, and watched as Hisako went to take her seat at the front of the class. Now that she mentioned it, Hisako was right. Erina was nowhere to be seen, and she's usually one of the first to arrive.

This would cause a bit of issues for the plans he had today, but he would work things out. Looking around the class, he noticed two other students were missing.

'_I wonder_' thought the director but soon enough Tadokoro Megumi raced in the room, huffing and puffing.

"Made it," she breathed out clutching her chest. This amused the director and some of the class.

She hurriedly sat down next to Ryōko and Shun who eyed her worryingly.

"Where's Soma?" whispered Ryōko.

"Don't tell me he's still at the Polar Star?" followed up Shun.

"Uh-, um, he told me to go on ahead" Megumi squeaked. "He should be here any minute now."

Ikumi behind the group tapped Megumi's chair. "Hey, what's that idiot thinking? He surely doesn't want to get in trouble with the _Food's Demon King!_"

Takumi leaned back in his seat. "That Soma… he thinks the world revolves around him."

"That's funny coming from you" Ikumi retorted defending her friend. "You guys act the same anyways, so does that mean you think the world revolves around you too?"

"What now?" Takumi challenged.

Nakiri Senzaemon saw this escalating quickly. He took this as his cue to begin class, and with a loud cough followed by the clearing of his throat, everyone settled down.

"May I have your attention" the Demon King began. "The past two weeks have been quite fun. I have come to understand your strengths and your weaknesses. Since you saplings came to Tōtsuki, it's always been an individual battle. I've strategically set you up against one another, that way your skills continue to sharpen and only the strongest survive..."

He chuckled to himself. For what reason no one knew or even dared to ask. The elder man then started to stroke his beard and leaned against his table.

"Starting today, you will not only juggle fighting each other, but you will also be working in teams." This caused everyone to go wide-eyed.

"Teams?" mumbled Akira. He certainly did not want to be working with anyone else. He's always cooked alone. Aside from usually making spices with Jun, he was always by himself. '_This will be annoying'_ he thought.

Alice turned to Ryō and smiled. If it were teams, this would be more than easy. Of course they would have to face off against Erina and Hisako, but that was a challenge she was looking forward to. Ryō returned her look as if reading her mind, he was also relishing the thought of a new challenge.

"You will be working in groups of three," continued the Tōtsuki director. "I had made a list of the teams I originally wanted to be together. However since two of your classmates are missing, and since this is a small class, that creates quite an issue. Hence, I am adjusting these teams a bit based on who's currently present. When I call your names, I want you to get in your groups."

'_Oh No!_' thought everyone simultaneously. _'Anything but assigned groups!' _All of them feared for the worst, especially Megumi. She did not want to be in any uncooperative group filled with egos. She placed her head down on the table, waiting for her overly dramatic life sentence.

"Group one will be Ibusaki Shun, Mito Ikumi, and..." the director looked around the room. He wanted to make interesting teams. It would be no fun if there were no conflict of interest. He then remembered Ikumi and Takumi's little spat earlier. He smiled evilly. "Takumi Aldini."

The three then turned to look at each other. Shun seemed to be fine with the team giving the two a smile.

"You've got to be kidding. Me, him, and you" Ikumi said now pointing her finger at Takumi. "Why couldn't I be partnered with Soma-kun?" she bemoaned…

"Jeez…" Takumi sighed and closed his eyes. "The world has it out for me."

The three of them moved to sit next to each other.

"Group two," Nakiri Senzaemon continued. "Kurokiba Ryō, Sakaki Ryōko, and…" He looked around the classroom once again and met with the pleading eyes of Alice. He loved his granddaughters, and it was not a well-kept secret he'd do anything for them. Did he have the will to refuse her?

"And my granddaughter Alice" he sighed in defeat.

"Yes!" Alice fist pumped and beamed brilliantly at Ryō. He in turn relaxed comfortably in his chair. He was glad that they were partners, the closer she was to him, the more controlled the beast. The two then turned to face Ryōko who gave them an uneasy smile.

"Wow, to partnered with Alice and her bodyguard. This going to be interesting" Ryōko noted.

Megumi patted her friend on the back, reassuring her things were going to be fine.

The three of them then followed the actions of the group before and moved to sit next to each other.

"Now, group three."

Hisako clasped her hands together hoping for her name to be called with Erina…

"_Please, please, please let it be me and Erina-sama in the same group!"_

"Hayama Akira, Tadokoro Megumi, and Arato Hisako."

Hisako groaned, face palming herself in the process. This was just her luck. Erina just had to be late today of all days… She then turned and looked towards her new teammates. She thought of many actions before she settled on being kind. If everyone got along then things might not be as bad.

She tried to play nice and gave the two an attempt at a smile.

Megumi saw Hisako's surprising shot at friendship and returned it eagerly, relieved that maybe this group thing wont be so bad. She clearly shared the same sentiments as Erina's aide. Akira on the other hand wasn't as friendly as the other two. He gave them both nods and then went back to his musings. The two girls raised a brow simultaneously at this. However they both decided not to question it and instead, moved to where he was sitting.

Then it just hit everyone in class. There were two people still not put into a group! And those two were…

"Now then as you all know we have a weird number of students this year," said Nakiri Senzaemon. "I decided to make groups of three, knowing that this would create one group with only two members. Since my granddaughter Erina and Yukihira Soma are late today, as punishment they will be group four, and be the sole group of two."

Everyone in the class just froze. ERINA and SOMA! In the same group at that! They were going to kill each other! Or rather, Erina was going to kill poor Soma! The whole class knew their relationship. It was pretty damn one-sided, with the vengeful Erina always scheming against Yukihira and the oblivious Soma thinking them to be friends.

Hisako quickly raised her hand knowing how Erina would feel about this situation. "Nakiri-sama! Would you mind re… re-organizing the groups? I would like to take Erina-sama's place. Erina-sama and Yukihara-san don't-"

"Get along?" He finished for her. She nodded meekly. "I know. But the more I think about it, I like the idea. First off this is punishment for the two arriving late to one of my lectures, even if one of them has an excuse. However this also seems to work out. They are the two highest ranked, therefore being down a member should not be seen as a handicap. And more importantly, they WILL learn to work together."

Everyone in the class just sat quietly.

"I suggest everyone here worry more about themselves than those two. These group projects will be semester long and they will require everything out of you."

Nakiri Senzaemon smiled. Oh yes, he was definitely going to enjoy these groups.

* * *

_[Forty minutes before class started]_

"Come on Soma-kun! We're going to be late!" whined Tadokoro.

"Gimme a sec Megumi. I just need to take the meat from the freezer downstairs and bring it up so it can defrost for dinner later tonight!" He had just finished the dishes from their breakfast and was now washing his hands.

It was Soma's day to do the cooking. The Polar Star household had a rule where a different member of the family did the day's meals. Today obviously was Soma's.

"I told you to take it out last night! You should have listened to me."

"Yeah I know," Soma answered. "But I just thought it would be more fresh this way if I take it out in the morning!"

Ryōko and Shun watched the exchange and waited patiently. Getting a bit nervous they decided to leave and head to class. The distance from their place and the academy was a good half-an-hour walk. They didn't want to arrive late to one of the Food's Demon King's classes.

Megumi decided to stay and help Soma bring up the meat. For a few minutes they searched but couldn't find it. Soma was sure it was in the freezer downstairs and so did Megumi. Time was running short and Soma eventually told Tadokoro to leave without him.

The young cook then raced around the dorm looking in all the freezers placed around the building. This was a cooking building after all, and there were freezers everywhere! Eventually he found the meat in one of the outdoor refrigerators.

'_Fumio must've' moved it out here'_ the young chef concluded. He pulled out his phone and looked at the time. "Crap! Class starts in five minutes! I'm so dead!"

He ran towards the back of the house and pulled out his old bicycle.

"Thank god I brought this along with me for situations like this!"

Soma hopped on his bike and raced down the road to Tōtsuki. Knowing he was already pretty late, he threw carefulness aside and sped down the path. Pulling his phone out of his pocket while keeping his other hand on the wheel, he looked down to see class was now starting. "Damn" he muttered.

Lifting his head up, Soma only then noticed he was on a collision course with a black car making a bend around the corner. It was already too late to avoid the crash, as he was moments away from colliding with the mid of the vehicle. Instead he tried to turn the wheel so he could just graze the car. Unluckily for him, he was not fast enough and the wheel hit against the lower base of the black car and grinded against it. The pressure of the continuous contact caused one of Soma's spokes from his front wheel to separate from the frame. The now loose spoke bore into the black car's back wheel popping the tire and sending the car into a skid.

Soma fell off his bike with a thump and watched as the accident caused the car to slide over towards the edge of the road and come to a complete stop.

The driver hopped out the car and started yelling at Yukihira.

"What the hell kid? Look what you've gone and done!"

Soma bowed his head and continued to make apologies. "Sorry, sorry!" he waved. There really was nothing else to say, this was his entire fault. He was glad the car only slid from the blown wheel and nothing catastrophic happened.

"Yu-Yukihira!"

Soma looked up to see Erina marching her way over to him, both hands held in a fist tightly. Judging from the opened car door, she was the passenger inside.

"N-Nakiri?" Soma said surprised. "What are you doing here? Running late too?" he joked, a sheepish smile on his face because of the accident he caused.

"Obviously!" She shouted. "Do you even pay attention to where you're going? One moment I'm just minding my own business, looking out my window, and then wham! I see your bike slamming right in my face!"

Soma scratched the back of his head and continued to give an apologetic smile. "I said I'm sorry. Listen I know this is my entire fault. I didn't mean to startle you."

"Ugh!" Erina stomped her foot and placed her hand on her hips. "How incompetent can you be?"

"Erina-sama" the driver said now making his way to the two after inspecting the car. "We don't have an extra wheel in the trunk, I will have to call for assistance. Luckily that's the only damage done."

"Lucky" she repeated sarcastically, wishing some damage _would_ have been done; specifically to one certain red haired boy. She then shook her head and then turned back to Soma. "I should sue you Yukihara." The idea pleased her to an extent, but she sighed knowing it would be useless. "However knowing you, you probably don't even have the money to afford even a single new wheel for my car."

Soma laughed thinking she was just joking. Brushing aside her comments he went to look at his bike. '_Damn it took a pretty hard beating but only a spoke came off! I'm fortunate!' _he thought.

Erina was slightly irritated. He was ignoring her.

Soma picked up the bike and tried sitting on it. The bike held his weight perfectly, and seemed like nothing was wrong with it, aside from a single broken spoke.

"Hey Erina my bike is fine!" said Soma, as if that was the most important thing right now.

Erina raised an annoyed eyebrow at his proclamation… "Who cares about your stupid bike! How am I going to get to class now?"

Soma then brought the bike over to her and pointed at it. "Well this _stupid_ bike here is working. Hence it can get us to class." He spoke slowly, as if he was talking to a child. He even made quotation gestures with his hand when he said the word "stupid" to get his point across.

"What are you talking about? How is that questionable bike going to get BOTH of us to class?" Erina flicked her hair back and continued to sternly glare at him.

"You've never ridden a bike before have you?" Soma asked, not even the slightest bit fazed at the raging Nakiri.

"W-What?" The Tōtsuki princess was caught off guard, her face blushed slightly. It was true; she had never ridden a bike before. Not because she never wanted to, but the opportunity never arouse. She was always driven everywhere, or she flew to places. Never was she ever forced to learn to ride and bike to a destination. "W-What does that have that have to do with anything!"

"Well two people can ride a bike if you know how. All I have to do is adjust the seat, so there is room for the two of us!" With that said, Soma began to do just that, adjust the seat.

"B-But wait! I don't know how to ride remember!"

Soma finished moving the seat back so that way, there was enough room for two. "Just be quite and hop on!"

"I'm not getting on… that!" Erina pointed at the worn out bike. "That doesn't even look safe!" She crossed her hands and turned on her heels. She was not "_hopping_" on anything. Erina started making her way back to the car.

"Ok, fine with me. You can arrive even later if you want. I understand if you're scared."

Erina grinded her teeth. He had a point. She was definitely going to arrive even later than expected for she had no idea how long it would take for this replacement wheel to come. But what drove her over the edge was that he called her scared! This Nakiri Erina was scared of nothing! Especially of some measly bike ride.

Unwillingly, driven by her pride, she made her way back to Soma.

"Fine! Just tell me what to do so we can get this over with, and we can be on our way."

Soma gave her a wide grin and held the bike upright. He hopped on the bike and sat at the tip of the seat, making sure not to take up too much room.

"Ok, now you get on behind me! And remember to tuck your legs in!"

"A-Are you serious!" Erina stuttered, her face now the color of a tomato. Just the idea of being that close to Soma in that type of position was causing her all sorts of embarrassment.

"Well yeah, how else are we going to do it?" The red head said, oblivious to the torment this was causing the girl.

Erina looked down and squeezed her fists. _To be put in such a situation. Damn you__ Yukihira Soma!_ Without a further word, hesitantly Erina hopped on to the back of the bike flattening out her skirt so she could sit on it. The last thing she wanted was for a wardrobe malfunction.

She couldn't believe the situation they were in! And to be in such a compromising position too. Her face could not be any redder.

"Ok, now put your arms around me. I'm about to start peddling." Before Erina could even protest, Soma took off which instinctively caused Erina to wrap her hands around the boy's waist.

Yukihara, as unmindful as always, thought nothing out of the ordinary. He rode down the road calmly, making sure to be safe since he now had a passenger with him. They were going to be late to class, that was for sure. But at least he wouldn't have to pay for the wheel of a car. He was sure Erina would not charge him. They were friends, right?

Erina on the other hand could not stop thinking about their current predicament.

She could feel everything. She could feel his cold back bracing against her warm chest, shielding her from the open wind. She noticed every time they rode over a bump, the way her unclothed thighs smacked against his clad ones. She became overly aware at the fact that at every turn he made, she would grip his abdomen tighter. She also felt the warmth of his neck the occasional times her forehead would lean against him. _It was all too much!_ If Soma had taken a moment to just turn his head and look at her, he would have seen the image of the most red-faced, embarrassed filled Erina that ever existed.

The two rode in silence. They were both perfectly fine with that. Soma didn't know what to say to be honest. He's normally a talker, but he didn't want to take the chance at stirring up Erina. Any wrong move and they could go toppling over. There would be no coming back from injuring Tōtsuki's prized jewel.

Erina was glad for the silence. If Soma were to spur up a convo she was afraid her voice would come out as a squeak. She was at the brink of fainting from embarrassment. She'd never been this close to a boy before, and it was pushing her over the edge. To make matters more embarrassing, this boy was her rival, Yukihira Soma. She wanted the ride to end as quickly as possible, for the fear of Soma noticing her increased heartbeat was eating at her. But even she could not deny the faint pleasant feeling she was experiencing. It was weird; she was always chauffeured in cars and planes. To be taken to her destination in such… how could she put it? Exciting? Rush-filled manner? Whatever the feeling, it was slightly enjoyable! The wind, partnered with the warmth of his back… it was an interesting feeling to say the least.

The ride felt like eternity to Erina and when it finally came to an end as Soma pulled up to their class building, Erina hopped off as quickly as she could and turned from facing him. She didn't want him to see the embarrassment on her face. She gripped herself slightly, feeling a bit cold now that his body heat was gone from her. She immediately tried to get control of herself, wanting to rid the sure blush that was painted red upon her features.

Soma tied the bike to the nearby rack and then turned and gave Erina a thumbs up.

"How'd you enjoy your first bike ride?" He grinned wildly, completely unaware of the emotions going through the ice queen.

"Hmph" Erina tossed her hair and ignored him. She began making her way to class. There was no way she would admit… that it was… even at the slightest. _Enjoyable_.

* * *

**Authors Note: **Oh yeah! Another chapter down and out! Hahaha. I thought it came out quite nicely don't you guys? Man that Erina, she will never admit to anything huh? Such a Tsundere… hahahhaha. And that Soma, he needs to get his head checked. Could he be any more dense!

Oh, btw did you guys read the new chapters! The way Erina was looking at SOMA! Such a great look. Hahaha. I love her Tsundere-ness. She's totally interested in all that he does, even if she doesn't want to admit it. Mangahere never shows my comments so sad. They only post comments from top rated people… like how do you even become that! -_-

Been reading that manga since Ch. 2! I should be a top commenter! LMAO. Though I guess it's for the sake of the better. I would spam the posts with Erina x Soma theories lol.

**SHEhadMEatHELLO: **Thank you! Hopefully there will be more on the site.

**Hunter-35:** Hahah your welcome! And don't put yourself down. You wont get better unless you work at your craft ;)

**Guest 1:** Hahaha. Yeah, I'm a big fan of Erina and Soma. I just love their relationship. The hotshot new guy from apparently low roots vs. the omnipotent and unchallenged snow queen. Isn't it a fun romance? Lol.

**PancakeTiger:** Hahah. It's funny because I kept checking for a SNS fanfic for forever. Got so upset that there was none. And when I saw that FF had created a category, I just had to write one.

**Guest2:** Thank you! XD And lookie what we have here… a Erina and Soma moment. Shoot me now lol. Hope you like it! Haha.


	3. Stupid Papaya Salad

**Year Three**

_Stupid Papaya Salad_

If the level of tension in the room could be visually measured by gravity, the whole class would be at the Earth's core right now…

Having already suffered a humiliating means of transportation, and after being told that she would have to partner with her arch-nemesis, the aura coming off of the Tōtsuki princess was that of death. She was beyond the point of irritation. To her, this day could not get any more frustrating.

She wanted to plead to her grandfather for a different outcome, for a different partner. ANYONE besides Yukihira Soma! It was so unfair. How come Alice had her aide Ryō, but she didn't have Hisako! However, she refrained from such undignified actions. She was not going to lower herself to those standards. The little princess did her best to keep herself calm on the outside.

It was tense. Even a child could tell something was amiss. Everyone could feel the atmosphere; everyone but Soma and Nakiri-sensei. The two looked weightless, perfectly comfortable in their own shoes.

Senzaemon looked more than pleased at the little bit of animosity he created. He knew he couldn't teach Erina everything, and he knew there would come a time where even his teachings would not be able to reach her. She was a rare talent, and she would excel past him. At that point, her growth would decay, for there would be no one to challenge her. He struggled to find a solution to this dilemma, but at the entrance ceremony, he knew, the young cook with the fierce look in his eyes and the unwavering grin was the answer.

Staying true to his nature, Soma was just oblivious of it all. He didn't feel the pressure of partnering with Erina nor did he sense any animosity from her. He strode to the cooking station Nakiri had sat herself at and took a seat besides her without a care.

Erina glared at him but it went unnoticed or ignored by the teen… which of the two she couldn't tell.

Nakiri-sensei then named the dish to be made today, Papaya Salad! He told them it was Thailand's iconic salad, and he gave them the basic ingredients as well as the majority of the class time to finish it. In the last few minutes, he said he would taste test them and either approve or disapprove of their dishes. With that said he announced for the groups to begin.

Almost everyone was taken by surprise. A salad? That's their first test? Why would such a simple dish be requested? Even the most basic of cooks could make a salad…

Nakiri Senzaemon leaned back against his chair, unfazed by all their looks. He had expected this. But this salad was much different from the normal. It was not just a basic salad with dressing. A Papaya Salad is a dish compromised of so many different flavors and toppings that there was not just one way to make it. Also, the dressing on this dish was to be hand made! That would be the real key to this piece, as it revolves around a blend of the Papaya's and the other ingredients. He could not wait to see what the children would come up with.

Soma glanced over at Erina, which signaled her attention.

"You ready?"

Erina just glowered at him and said nothing. Instead she got up to get the tools needed to make the dish. She didn't need someone else's help. She could make this stupid Papaya Salad all by herself. Though she had never made a questionable dish such as this before, the instructions were quite clear and she was more than confident of her own skill. It was just a salad after all. There was no need for teamwork…

Soma let out a sigh. It was going to be a long day. He followed her lead, letting her get the cooking tools while he went to pick out the ingredients.

Looking at the other groups, their was definitely more excitement happening. In group one, Ikumi and Takumi were already going at it with Shun trying to mediate the two. Eventually he decided to give up and move on.

"Listen meat head, this is more of a vegan meal! I'm taking the lead here!"

"S-Shut up! Just because I specialize in meat doesn't mean I can't make a dish without it! Plus there was no rule that said we could not add some in there!"

While the two were arguing Shun got the materials and equipment ready. He placed it at their station, and while seeing his two teammates still fighting, he began grinding up the ingredients in a mortar to form the key paste. This salad was very special as apposed to others, and he knew that. It's all about the unique hand made dressing.

"Hey smoky, what do you think your doing!" Ikumi shouted now noticing Shun had already started making the key ingredient of the dish without them.

Takumi also now realizing Shun had already started, raced over to him.

"Gimme-that! Let me show you how to use a mortar properly" Takumi took the mortar and started grinding the ingredients Shun had placed in a flamboyant and elaborated fashion, twisting and turning his hands and hips in all sorts of directions.

"This is the Aldini family secret technique!

Ikumi and Shun eyed each other and then deadpanned at Takumi. They couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"I didn't know there was a secret way to use a mortar," Shun said through bits of laughter.

"That's some secret technique you got their Aldini," Ikumi commented sarcastically, trying to stifle her giggle. "With all that hip action, I would of thought you're Spanish, not Italian..."

In group two everything was going according to plan, Nakiri Alice's plan that is. Ryōko and Ryō dutifully followed her instructions, Ryōko being very cooperative because she just wanted things to go as smoothly as possible.

"This is great! A future head scientist like myself in the field of Gastronomy could always use more assistants. Because Erina had one, I had to get one. But having two! Ha! Look at me now Erina!" The silver haired Nakiri started grinning madly to herself. The feeling of being back in a lab with her parents, with workers at her command; it was a sensation of pure joy.

Ryōko nudged Ryō in the side. "Is she always like this?"

"Alice? Hmm…" He pondered for a moment. "Yeah."

"She seems to also have a thing about one-upping Erina."

The boy nodded a bit knowingly. "That is also true. Erina and Yukihira."

Group three probably had the most comfortable atmosphere of all. Megumi, Hisako, and Akira were getting along better than any of the three had expected, and this was probably because of all of their passive natures. This in turn gave much relief to one nervous Tadokoro Megumi. She was glad for the relaxed environment they had.

Hisako was also quite pleased with the group, but she could not help herself from stealing glances at Soma and Erina every now and then. Megumi noticed her constant peeking and patted her on the back. She was actually quite hesitant at first to do so, but thanks to their great group atmosphere she found the confidence easily.

"If you want to check on them you can," Megumi said knowingly.

Hisako blushed embarrassingly and shook her head.

"No, I'm part of this group! Sorry, I will try to focus more."

"Don't worry. They will be fine. I understand the feeling, I also can't help but wonder how's it going over there." Her motherly tone and warm comments seemed to ease Hisako. She in turned smiled and nodded.

"Thanks… " Hisako said lowly, head down, too embarrassed to meet Megumi in the eye. Having then seemed rejuvenated, she beamed brilliantly at Tadokoro. "Yeah, your probably right. Ok, let's focus on our dish!"

Megumi nodded vigorously. "Yes!"

Akira just watched the two and did his share of the work. He didn't feel the need to partake in the conversation. He was contempt doing what he was assigned.

Erina's aide and the clumsy girl were actually very tolerable. As snotty as he thought Erina was, the aide seemed to be fairly nice. He would have never thought her so; he guessed it was probably because of Erina. Tadokoro on the other hand, whom he had known from previous encounters, was a nice girl. He didn't talk to her much but from what he saw, she reminded him of Jun…

She was awkward and gullible, over-trusting and talkative, but sweet and kind… Soma's friend bared too many similarities to his mentor, thus he had mixed feelings about working in a group with her. As soon as the director announced that they were to be in a group, he couldn't help but be slightly aggravated. He didn't want to be reminded of Jun… he had to abstain from talking to her and focus on his cooking. He promised her that!

Akira sighed… having Tadokoro in his group was going to do him no favors in trying not to think about Jun…

Attention now back on the only team of two, Soma had allowed Erina to take the lead. He decided why not get some experience as a supporting chef, even though he preferred to actually lead himself. He also didn't want to upset the ever so volatile ice queen, and so he tried a more hands off approach.

Erina grabbed the mortar and Soma tossed her a Papaya for grinding. She eyed it curiously and then gave the fruit a squeeze.

_It was hard. _

Judging from the color of the one she was holding, and the others in Soma's hand, not a single one of them was ripe.

She turned and gave him a stern look. "Your useless you know that."

"Hmm?" Soma hummed. He wasn't really sure what she was talking about.

"These papayas. They are the main ingredients to this dish! You let everyone else pick out the best ones and you got not a single ripe fruit."

"Oh that!" The young cook grinned completely uncaring of her tone. This was how Erina behaved with him, he was used to it. "I did that on purpose."

Erina couldn't believe her luck. What the hell was he thinking? "Are you trying to fail?"

"Trust me ok? It's better to have the unripe ones. Everyone thinks the ripe fruit is better, but not for this dish. I've made this plate before! Restaurant Yukihira's secret menu #33!"

Erina rolled her eyes at his stupid little secret menu dishes. He seemed to have served an infinite number of them during his time at his little family shop.

"Figures you would have made a plebian dish like this before. Explain then."

Soma grinned. He ignored her little insult as always and got right into the logic behind wanting unripen papayas.

"Well to start, the dish is locally known as Som Tam. And despite that the main ingredient is papaya, which one usually figures as sweet, the dish is actually very tangy. The texture of this dish is also very crisp and somewhat firm, sometimes even to the point of crunchiness. And the only way to get this taste and texture is through the use of the fruit being unripe."

Erina was impressed, a feat that only few have ever accomplished. Her eyes had widened a little but she was quick to recover. He explained in such detail and knowing… She dared not show her surprise, especially not to him. Instead she focused on what he said and nodded.

"I see. It is that which allows the fruit to endure the beating of the mortar."

Soma's grin widened, he knew she was a quick learner. "Exactly."

Erina said nothing else and got to making the blend. The two worked in further silence, weirdly well. Erina's astonishment continued to grow. He matched her movements to the tea. He was able to keep up with her cooking, and he even predicted her next actions so he would be ready to help. In a matter of moments, they had made the perfect mixture, containing pounded garlic, chilies, the unripen papayas, fish sauce, tomatoes, and the rest of the ingredients.

It was then that Soma came up with an idea. His creative mind was always at work, and the thought of a way to evolve the dish just popped in his mind.

"I got an idea! Something to give the Som Tam a bit more texture!"

Erina tried to refrain from rolling her eyes. "Please Yukihira-kun… we've actually got this far and the dish is pretty much done. Don't go getting one of your crazy ideas now."

Soma laughed and again ignored her. "Lets add peanuts!"

Erina stopped what she was doing and gave him a cold glare. "No."

"Listen, I'm telling you it will add to the texture."

Erina didn't feel like entertaining him. She entertained his stupid bike ride. She entertained the use of the unripen papaya (even though that made sense). She was even _allowing_ him to take part in helping her. By her standards, Erina figured she had been quite tolerable as of late.

But she was not going to let him add whatever he wanted to their dishes. If she let him this time, then surely the next assignment he will do the same. She had to nip it in the bud. This was not her way of doing things.

She was not going to let him add peanuts to their dish.

"I won't say it again…"

Yukihara in return just gave her a bored look, completely unimpressed. He'd seen her get like this so many times. She was even doing her signature look, legs slightly ajar and hands placed firmly on her hips. He would bet at any moment she was going to flick back her hair-

"No"

And there it was. She flicked her hair.

He grinned a bit, she was so predictable. Erina was slightly confused at his smirk, but when he walked away from the station without even the slightest retort, she beamed triumphantly.

'_That's right. Know your place Yukihira. You can try those weird ideas of yours with your plebian followers.'_

With the _battle_ won and Erina seemingly in a better mood, she focused on the presentation of the now finished dish.

She was so absorbed in the final touches of the salad that she did not notice Soma returning to the station; spoon in one hand while the other was firmly clasped, squeezing and grinding something.

All the while making his way towards her, he used the spoon to scoop some of the remaining dressing in the mortar that was left unattended. Then with his other hand, he sprinkled the now crushed peanuts over the dressing, coating it nice and evenly on the spoon.

"Erina."

Hearing her name, the blonde sighed. From his voice, she knew who it was.

'_God this man's insufferable."_

Just when she thought she'd gotten rid of him, he returns. She should of known it wouldn't be that easy.

'_It never is with Yukihira…'_

The Tōtsuki princess then began to turn around.

"Wha-"

Before she could even react, it was already over. Soma had taken the peanut-dressed-filled spoon and shoved it into her partly opened mouth. Her light violet eyes shot wide open; she was completely caught off guard.

The smooth yet bumpy texture of the peanut dressing held by the metal of the spoon was pressed forcefully against her delicate tongue. Almost instantaneously, the dressing melted and the taste started to spread. The first flavor to hit her was the blast from the pungent Papaya. Her rival was right, the tangy taste provided from the unripe papayas was exploding in her mouth. And not only that, but the piquant taste it formed in combination with the other ingredients was overwhelming. Finally when it all seemed to have all melted away, what remained on her godly palate were small crumbs of peanut.

Unlike the dressing, it had not dissolved on her tongue.

Unconsciously, Erina bit into one of the crumbs, and what hit her was an aftermath of eruptions. The little crumb had soaked up the papaya mixture into its own body, and the fusion of the papaya dressing mixed with the saltiness of the peanut created a whole new flavor when cracked open. They were like tiny mines, exploding one at a time after every bite.

A visual image then materialized to Erina; She was on a battlefield, wearing a worn and damaged female army dress. She was riding in the passenger seat of some random desert patrol army vehicle over bumpy terrain, taking part in some haphazard war. Explosions and bombs were going off all around her, but thanks to the amazing maneuvers and reactions by the driver, they were expertly dodging them all. Erina turned to face the driver seat and saw and army clad Soma, hands firmly on the wheel and foot pressed hard on the gas. He also looked somewhat dirty, worn and tired, probably because of the war she figured; but when he turned to her, he was anything but.

His face was radiating with excitement. His eyes shined intensely, his golden orbs showing so much delight and thrill. His smile was also typical Soma, wide and brilliantly white. He looked so calm, even though they were surrounded by warfare. It was such a powerful feeling he was giving off, even she felt comfortable amidst all the fighting. He looked valiantly handsome, even with all the dust and smudges of dirt on him.

She couldn't help but blush. His fierce look was a little too much for her.

"Erina" he said. She didn't know how she could hear him, with all the noise and chaos around them. She just _could_. Somehow his voice came threw it all, and for some reason the fact that it didn't make sense did not bother her.

"Yes," Erina meekly mumbled, while unconsciously leaning a bit towards him. She couldn't find the strength to say anymore. She was breathless…

"How was it?"

'_Huh?'_

Erina was taken back.

_What? How was what? What is he talking about?_

The battle worn Soma also leaned in, their faces merely inches apart. All was forgotten. His confusing question, the fact that he was driving without even looking where they were going, the bombs always narrowly missing them, the mines and the chaos... everything! It became completely irrelavant. Erina shut her eyes tightly. She didn't know why, she did it instinctively as if expecting something to occur.

However, to her surprise and maybe even slight displeasure, nothing happened. She then opened up her eyes only to see her environment had reverted to the norm. She was now again in the classroom, at her station, back leaned against her table and spoon hanging from her mouth; dangerously close from falling out.

There in front of her stood a smug Soma, a look she remembered all too well, reminiscent of their first meeting.

"So, how was it?"

Erina gritted her teeth and bit on the spoon hard. She was not going to tell him he was right. There was no way she would.

Though her actions had said it all to the young chef. And seeing her head bowed slightly, he knew she had tasted defeat. Even if she was too stubborn to admit it.

This day, first the bike ride and now this… It was starting to get out of hand. Erina needed it to end!

* * *

**Authors Note:** Hahaha… that Soma, he sure knows how to let his food do the talking!

I want to say sorry guys for the long wait! I had a minor issue Fanfiction, and it's actually still unresolved. Some of you might know my other story Slay Me? Well, for some reason it does not pop up under the Shokugeki No Soma section. Like I know Slay Me says Shokugeki No Soma, but when you click to see all Shokugeki No Soma work, it's not there! Ugh, it's been such a pain. I have no idea what to do… Is this just me? Oh wells…

Also the new chapters of Soma been amazing! Ugh I wish there were some Erina-Soma moments! lmao. Actually even just more Erina would be nice lol. But I guess I have to wait, the author himself did say not much Erina would be around because of the tournament.

Plus OMG. Ryō is better than Alice? And the way he spoke to her! WHAT! See, this is the issue when writing a story based on another story that's technically only begun. Characters develop. Here I had this concept Ryō was more of a follower like Hisako but just more badass… now, ARGH! What a plot twist! HAHA. Great for the manga, not for my story lol.

Wow, I got a lot of reviews! Thank you so much! I don't want to take up too much space responding so, sorry if some of the comments are a bit short!

**TeddyHugs: **Yes! I loved that moment too. I thought it came out pretty good! I kept rewriting that moment over and over until it felt right haha.

**Guest Feb26:** Thank you! Yeh, I tend to overwrite sometimes, so sometimes there will be silly lines. Haha. I'll try to cut down. And me too!

**Hunter-35: **Your welcome=]

**IceEagle9:** Haha Thank you! I re-read SNS over and over while waiting for update! Like I really do lol.

**Guest Mar9:** Haha! Sorry for the wait. I'm glad your enthused over my story XD! Hope you like the update ;)

**CityHunter22:** As you wish! Here you are haha.

**PancakeTiger:** :) Thank you! I try my best to keep them in character until I develop them lol. Yay! I think the same thing! Kanon seems so special to me, she has to reappear somewhere! And to the Polar Star Dorm? LMAO. I don't know. Maybe, I can't see it for now. She's too high mighty to do something like that unless forced lol.

**KurabaraIto:** Haha. Thank you! Yes the manga is just so addicting!

**Debdub:** Haha! Thank you! Keep crying (Not really haha)! Because soon there will be more! (I hope XD)

**Digital-Mail: **Hahaha! So professional! And I will no worries! I try to proof read, and I never update until a day later so that way I can read over the chapter. But ahh, some stuff always slips by.

**XMamaPandaX:** Hahah. I will try to live up to your expectations XD.

**Kiukun-Nadralexe: **Aww… I didn't put much reaction in the chapter. Sorry! I kind of skipped though it. There will be more moments trust me! Haha!

**S:** Haha! Thank you very much! Their relationship to me is the most fun thing about the manga. I can't wait to see what the author does ;)

**Healthy:** Yup Healthy! You are definitely right. I know she's not Ganguro. I'm just using it as a reference to describe her. I hope that hasn't upset you.

**AnimeXwolfy:** LMAO. Hayama X Jun huh? I could make an attempt to, but first I want to focus on this story. You can already see how long it takes for me to update Haha. There will bits of Hayama X Jun in this story in the mean time lol. Though I'm not sure what I want to do with him yet… Hmmm lollll.


	4. Her Nightmare, Her Victory

**Summary Thus Far: **Yukihira Sõma, now in his third and final year at Tōtsuki, is one of the last of eleven remaining students. And as fate would have it, to make his journey that more interesting, he is partnered up with _the _Nakiri Erina. The two worked on their first dish together and Soma force fed her one of his ideas, specifically adding peanuts to their salad dish. The events of that day, have since stuck with Erina, for it was a day she could never forget.

* * *

**Year Three**

_Her Nightmare, Her Victory_

"_Erina…"_

_Golden orbs brazenly stared into her pinkish violet ones._

"_Yes…"_

It was happening again… That same impudent dream, reminiscent of the papaya salad incident. Erina was completely conscious she was dreaming. This was the umpteenth time she was having this fantasy, or as she labeled it…

**A NIGHTMARE**.

Trapped inside her own mind, she could only watch helplessly as the memory started to replay itself. Every vivid detail down to the rugged yet handsome look Sõma had on his face to the way her hands clutched tightly onto the seat of the car after every passing bump. It was all occurring like it was happening for the first time; the dream had captured it all.

"_How was it?"_

"No! Don't answer! Wake up!" Erina shouted to herself. She was trying everything in her nature to shake herself awake. She did not want to see this again.

This… this defeat! This stupid moment where she had actually shown acceptance of this man. She wanted it gone! Why won't it leave her alone? Why was it constantly haunting her!

She watched as the imaginary Sõma leaned in closer to her imaginary self.

"No! Don't! Stopppppppppp!"

Erina shot up from her bed, face flustered and sweaty, completely shook from her fantasy. Panting heavily, she clutched her chest, feeling her heart beat at what felt like a million times per second.

She did it, she woke up! She was saved... Collapsing back on her bed, she stared at the ceiling trying to calm herself down. How many days has it been? Weeks even? It was surely over a month now that they were assigned partners.

She knew it from the moment she met the eyebrow-scarred chef; he was going to be bad for her heart. And indeed, her premonition was not wrong.

Turning her head towards the dresser where her alarm clock was, Erina saw it was already morning, around the time she usually got up and readied for school. Any minute now, Hisako would probably arrive with her daily schedule. With a sigh, now back in control of her own body, the little princess slid out of bed and went to get dressed.

* * *

"Hey, what do you think Nakiri? Should I leave it on for another thirty seconds or so?"

She didn't answer. She didn't even want to look that way. Just hearing his voice was irritable enough. She focused hard on setting up the garnishes for their dish.

She was going to ignore him completely.

Sõma sighed and shoved his hands in his pockets. He had no idea why some days she would be like this.

While working with "God's Tongue" wasn't always the easiest thing, some days she would be more cooperative. And by cooperative, he meant her just being responsive.

But then there were days like this, where she would completely zone him out.

He didn't care when she gets mad at him, or even when she gets flustered to the point of even yelling at him. Hell, he actually found her funny when she got like that. But the day's when she ignored him like their situation now… these ones actually annoyed him.

Sõma kind of wished she would speak to him. He was her partner after all, but he decided not to pry. He was naturally a social person. Having no communication did not sit well with him.

The two finished their dish and Erina went up and gave it to her grandfather to test. He gave it a few bites, clearly searching for any imperfections, and after finding none, he smiled warmly at the pair approving the plate. He gave them his typical "strip," another sign of his acceptance and Erina smiled.

The blonde then sat down back at her table, waiting anxiously for the other groups to finish so class could end.

"So you're going to ignore me today too huh Nakiri?" said Sõma, pulling up a seat beside her after cleaning up. He sat in it backwards, hands and chin resting on the rail of the chair.

Erina turned and shot him a glare. She didn't respond, hoping her scowl and piercing look was enough to scare him away. Sadly, it never seemed to work when it's directed towards the red head. He was like immune to it or something.

"Come on don't be like that! We're partners, let's talk," said Sõma while giving her a big grin; much like she assumed, he was completely unfazed.

Erina turned her head away. His proximity, this man, he was always too close for comfort. And the way he was sitting in his chair, so boyish and immature, straddling it completely unprofessionally, it caused her to slightly blush.

"Jeez… can you at least tell me if I'm doing something wrong?" He cocked his head to the side when asking.

Again silence. The blond crossed her arms and shot him another glare, hoping maybe a second one in succession will be enough to drive the point home to him.

Sõma actually chuckled at this. He had no idea why he found it a bit funny.

"So… we're communicating through facial expressions now? How's this then?"

The Yukihira genius then made the most unattractive face he could possibly muster. It was so unexpected and so random, it actually caught Erina completely off guard. The ridiculousness of it all even caused her to snicker and forced a small laugh out of her. Though she was quick to recover.

Sõma grinned. "See I can make faces too!"

Erina just shook her head, annoyed at his idiocy and frustrated at herself for letting her guard down.

"You're repulsive Yukihira-kun. You know this?"

"Oh she finally decides to speak," he teased. He continued smiling at her, hoping his silliness eased the atmosphere. By the looks of it, it was sort of working.

"I'm just tired, that's all. Haven't gotten much sleep lately." For whatever reason, Erina decided to at least communicate this much to him.

"Then get some sleep." The answer seemed obvious to the boy.

"It's not that simple!" Erina was already regretting speaking to him. If the answer was that obvious she would have solved it already. "The problem is not sleeping itself… I'm having… having a…"

"A what?"

Erina was definitely getting flustered.

"A… nightmare," Erina managed to get out. _Yes most definitely a nightmare._ That's undeniably what it was. And for the source of it to be so close, Erina could feel a headache coming on.

There was a long silence. The two just looked at each other, until Sõma burst out laughing. His sudden outburst caught the attentions of the other students and caused Erina to fluster more.

"Shut up idiot!" Erina punched him lightly in the arm. He was causing a scene. This is essentially the same reason she did NOT want to tell him. She knew he would react this way.

"Sorry," Sõma replied playfully. He continued to chuckle. "I just can't seem to fathom the great Nakiri Erina is all bothered by some nightmare."

"Well it's all your fault!" Erina blurted out.

"Huh?"

Silence.

Erina realized her mistake. She was too quick to answer. He always seemed to rile her up. She hated this. Every time she's around this man, he forces her out of her comfort zone. She even resorted to physical action this time by giving him a slight jab a few seconds ago. That was completely out of character. And now she mistakenly blurted out something he should not have heard!

"Ignore what I just said!"

"What do you mean?"

"Ignore it! Wipe it from your mind!"

Sõma just continued to laugh. He was completely amused at her overreactions. He was glad things were returning to normal. The thought then struck him. Fighting for them was normal… that's definitely not a normal relationship! He continued to snicker at the idea.

"What's so funny?" asked Hisako.

Megumi and Hisako made their way over to the pair having also just finished their dish.

"Nothing really, just making some small talk. Right Nakiri?" asked Sõma, while giving her a lighthearted wink.

The blonde rolled her eyes at him; Erina was however, thankful he did not disclose their conversation. She then turned to her secretary, and faithful friend.

Just seeing the pink haired girl was enough to calm her. There was something about Hisako… just her presence alone made Erina feel at ease. Erina smiled warmly at her.

"How's it going with your team Hisako?"

The assistant returned with a warm smile of her own and pulled Megumi next to her.

"It's actually going pretty smoothly Erina-sama. Akira is talented, but he keeps to himself. And Megumi truly is extraordinary as well! She was quiet at first too, but she has potential to be an amazing chef!"

Megumi blushed at the praise, clearly embarrassed now that all the attention was focused on her.

Erina nodded knowingly. She had worked with Megumi in the past and could see the shy girl definitely had hidden potential. The only thing holding her back was… herself.

'_Now if only Sõma could give her some of his brazenness'_ Erina thought hopelessly.

Sõma patted Megumi hard on the back, which caused her to jump.

"Great job Tadokoro!"

This caused Hisako to shake her head, flashbacks during their Stagiaire period where he first gave her praise during their time as a team. '_He hasn't changed one bit' _she thought fondly.

"Thank you… Sõma," said Megumi meekly. She was still a bit overwhelmed from all the praise, especially getting approval from both Erina and her secretary.

"Hey!" Alice shouted from her table, causing the four to turn and look to her.

Alice's team also seemed to have finished up, by signs that they were packing their bags.

"You guys, my place, tonight!" With that said, she turned back to Ryō and Ryōko, chatting away feverishly with whatever plans she had.

Ryōko shot them a tired look, and smiled weakly. Sõma grinned back at her reassuringly, knowing Alice must be making her and Ryō do all types of crazy things.

Erina, Hisako, and Megumi, shook their heads.

"Was that an invitation?" said Megumi wearily. "Sounds like we're forced to go..."

"I wonder what she has planned tonight?" asked Hisako.

"Knowing my cousin, it's going to be something unnecessary," Erina answered. "Either way, I'm not going."

"Why not? I'm going," Sõma said. "Let's all go!"

"I don't mind going with you S-Sõma-kun," assured Megumi.

"Nice! You want to come too right Hisako?"

"Well…" The secretary started. She was interested, but she did not want to go if Erina wasn't going. "We don't even know what that cunning Alice has planned. I'm not sure…"

"Come on, I know you want to come!" Sõma smacked her in the lower back too like he did with Megumi, causing her to jump.

"S-Stop doing that!" Hisako stammered clearly embarrassed. Her face flushed. Sõma just chuckled.

"You too Erina, you're going right?"

"I said no, do you even pay attention to what I say?"

"Eh, sometimes," Sõma teased. He then picked up his bag noticing class was officially over and started to make his way out, but before fully leaving turned around to face the three women.

"See you later tonight Nakiri, Hisako! Come on Megumi."

"Coming!" Megumi rushed to her desk and grabbed her bag.

Before the two could leave, Nakiri Sensei stopped the pair to have a word.

"I said I'm not going!" Erina shouted in retort, but Sõma was too occupied with her grandfather to hear.

"Oh that's right!" Hisako remembered. "You have to attend a charity ball tonight right?"

"Yes," Erina flatly replied. "Unlike them, I have obligations I must attend to."

Hisako lowered her head slightly knowing full well what Erina meant. Being the "God's Tongue," had it's price. Partnered with the fact that she was a "_Nakiri_," it meant she had no social life outside her responsibilities.

The loyal assistant could see right though her friend's plain response though. The blonde wanted to go. Even if she would deny it from here to hell, she wanted to be like them; like Alice, and Megumi, and even Sõma to some extent. Being able to do what they want when they wanted. It was a freedom the young princess did not possess. Nor was it something she had the time for.

"E-Erina-sama, I'll attend the ball with you!"

"No." Erina looked at Hisako and gave her a heartening smile. "You know in any other circumstance I would have you come with."

"But Erina-sama-"

"For something so petty like this, there is no need to trouble yourself Hisako. You've been working hard in your group these last few weeks. I've been watching you." This caused Hisako to smile a bit; feeling slightly appeased knowing her Erina-sama had been keeping an eye on her. "No need to trouble yourself for something so simple."

Erina then hugged her friend dearly. Hisako truly was the one person she loved above all else.

"Go have fun. Keep an eye out for that wicked Alice for me!" Erina grinned reassuringly.

"Ok! Will do Erina-sama!" Hisako beamed back at Erina and the two made their way out of class.

* * *

Later that night everyone was at the Nakiri residence, specifically Alice's wing.

Apparently she was throwing them a party, because well… she felt like it. No one dared question the randomness of it all, they were all too used to Alice's sporadic actions by now.

And what a party it was. The group drank, ate, cooked, and played all types of board games including Twister, Monopoly, Clue, and other sorts of trivia games Alice had brought. She insisted they were all played. It was going to be her first time playing all these games and she wanted to make sure she could brag about something she did that Erina had not done yet.

By the end of it all, too much had happened in one night to even keep track of.

Some of the highlights included Takumi tripping and accidentally touching Ikumi's butt during a game of Twister, which caused her great embarrassment and eventually led her trying to slap him.

Much to Takumi's amusement, she missed and ended up knocking out Shun who was completely caught off guard. Thus Shun's night ended early, with him being knocked out for the rest of the party.

His body could be found on one of Alice's couches where it laid for the remainder of the night.

Megumi somehow found herself trapped between Akira and Ryō, both forcing her to test their dish and see which one was better (well Ryō actually, Akira could have cared less). The choice between choosing Ryō and risk upsetting her group partner, or choosing Akira and facing Ryō's wrath was too much for her to bare. She eventually fainted because of the pressure when Ryō pressed her on for an answer, and much like Shun her night ended on a couch somewhere in Alice's large wing.

Ryōko was undefeated in Dance-Dance Revolution, which caused great amazement to both Hisako and Alice. This eventually led to the two taking lessons from the longhaired teen, and after a few runs they were exhausted. Ryōko then found herself on the floor being embraced by both Alice and Hisako in their drunken stupor (off her rice juice.) Both were muttering gibberish in their sleep, Hisako specifically saying something along the lines of "will teach Erina" and "being better than Alice."

Ryōko just smirked; it amazed her how two people could be so obsessed with Erina, and for such different reasons at that. Deciding against fighting the pair off of her, she fell asleep with the two.

* * *

Erina sat at her private table in the main dining hall; one hand holding up her face while the other toyed with her food. She wasn't one to play with her meal, she thought it to be completely disrespectful to a chef. However, being bored out of her mind, she couldn't possibly help herself.

Her eyes scanned over the elaborate ball, taking in everything in front of her. The beautiful décor that donned the walls and rooms in early 19th century Victorian fashion, the lovely Swan fountain as a centerpiece in the middle of the main hall which was now being used as the dance floor. To even the gazebo in the courtyard and the lovely balcony located on the upper floor. The place was stunning. This was truly a ball no one would forget. Well… no one aside from her.

She had fulfilled her duties. She showed up, gave a nice little speech, and now here she was, sealed to spend the next few hours watching over the events in front of her before she would be allowed her freedom again.

She didn't want to mingle with any of the people there. It was the same old conversations; her being in the spotlight, and everyone just praising her, or wanting her to taste their dish or something like that.

Normally it would be fine, in fact Erina loved the praise, the spotlight, and all the attention on her! She couldn't deny this little bit of sin, but she couldn't help feeling a bit annoyed at the moment. Her mind kept wandering off to the simple yet surely crazy party Alice was throwing with her friends.

Erina then caught herself. Did she just consider Alice and the others friends? She knew Hisako was definitely her friend but the others? She shook her head ridding herself of the thought, she was definitely bored.

Focusing back on her current predicament, Erina understood any other girl would of probably been amazed or even excited to be at such a place. The blonde however, knew she probably looked more disinterested than anything else. The ball, though truly magnificent, was something she had been to thousands of times already. It really wasn't anything new to her, nor did it encompass anything different.

She let out a small yawn clearly bored. If it wasn't for seeing her grandfather approaching her from the crowd, she probably would of fell asleep.

"Ah! Grandfather! I was wondering when you would have shown up." Erina beamed brightly at her loving elder.

Nakiri Senzaemon let out a chuckle and pulled up a seat beside her.

"You know I hate these kinds of things," he started slowly. "But as head of the family I am obligated to be here."

Erina smiled. "So am I grandfather."

The two shared a small laugh and Nakiri Senzaemon patted her head lovingly.

"One of these days Erina, you will be at my position. The head of the family…"

As Erina listened to her grandfather's story, the more she became interested as to why he was telling her this. It was not like she hadn't heard his stories before. In fact, he had told her stories of his rising to power many times over. However she kept quiet and listened, out of respect, and out of pure fascination because no matter how many times he told it, it never got boring.

"And that leads me to now, with you here by my side dear. You will probably have hundreds more if not thousands of these balls to attend to in your lifetime."

"I know grandfather." Erina sighed and continued toying with her dish. "It is my responsibility and I know that even though this may seem like a chore to me, others would die to be in my position."

Nakiri Senzaemon eyed her endearingly; she was wise way beyond her years. Of course she had a bit of an attitude from time to time, but never towards him. Which then caused another smile to grace the Nakiri elder as he relaxed more into his chair.

"Well that brings me to another point. All these balls shouldn't always be so boring and dull, especially for someone as young as you. And you shouldn't always be so broody my little one."

Erina raised a delicate brow at this. What was her grandfather getting at?

Seeing Erina's curiosity peak, he decided to continue. "Therefore I decided I should invite a guest to liven up the occasion. I think I saw him over at the food court… oh here he comes now."

With one hand holding a plate full of food stacked impossibly high, while the other was managing between holding two drinks, and some kind of meat filled shish kabob half eaten shoved deep into his mouth, Yukihira Sõma made his way over to the pair looking like an accident waiting to happen.

"Hipmph Gupmhs!"

"Swallow your food before speaking!" Erina reprimanded. She glared at the red head as he pulled up a seat between her and her grandfather. Placing his drinks and plate on the table, and with his hands now free, he pulled the remaining shish kabob out of his mouth and swallowed.

"Sorry about that," the teen chuckled. "I was saying hey guys!"

Erina continued to eye him harshly. Even dressed in an all black suit and red tie, Yukihira Sõma just didn't belong in this type of environment. His hair was still messy, long, and untamed; he didn't even try to comb it she bet. And even though this is a formal party, he still had that infamous cloth of his wrapped around his forearm. The tails of it were obviously hanging out from the cuffs of his blazer. Add in that little scar above his eyebrow, and yep, you have yourself more of a mobster type of appearance than that of a formal man.

Sitting next to her, he was just a complete contrast to her visually. While Sõma looked like someone from the mafia, Erina reeked of perfection. The teen always made sure she looked flawless; even if it was for an event she cared little for.

She sported a soft but nice and tight black cocktail dress that hugged her in all the right places, accentuating her already well-endowed figure. She wore matching black heels with red bottoms, and had with her on the table a small black leather clutch that was big enough to hold all her necessities. To complement her regal look, Erina wore her hair in a twist half updo, and curling the bottoms of her hair making them look a slight bit shorter but higher in volume. Her golden locks contrasted exceptionally well with her dark dress. She looked as every bit impressive as one could imagine.

"Thanks for the invite Gramps! Haven't been to one of these fancy ball things before."

"It's Nakiri-senpai to you! Don't call him gramps!" Erina quickly retorted.

Nakiri Senzaemon just laughed, well too accustomed to the nickname. In fact Sõma's been calling him that since his second year, when they became more familiar with each other.

"Well now, I'll leave you two to keep each other entertained." Nakiri Senzaemon smiled wickedly at his granddaughter and left before she could even begin to protest.

Erina crossed her arms and visually pouted. This was NOT happening. She had enough of this idiot at school.

Sõma mindlessly ate his food, not even batting a look at Erina. "This is actually pretty good Erina. You tried the salmon yet?"

"Yukihira-kun, why are you here!" Erina completely ignored his question. "Are you not supposed to be at Alice's party today? And it's Nakiri to you! You don't have permission to call me by my first name."

Sõma chuckled at that last bit.

"Well yeah, originally I was planning on heading to Alice's party, but before I left class Nakiri-sensei asked me to come to the ball tonight. He said you would be bored and sad all by yourself so he asked me to tag along," Sõma teased.

"I'm not bored or sad… well definitely not sad! But I guess… bored…" Erina reluctantly admitted. "Whatever! That's not the point. You shouldn't be here."

"Jeez relax. Your grandpa invited me, asking it as a favor. He even went through all the trouble of adding me to the guest list. I wasn't just going to turn him down."

Erina inwardly whined_. 'Why does grandfather always have to meddle in my affairs?'_

"Anyways I'm all done eating now. Wanna have some fun?"

"What do you mean fun? I'm perfectly enjoying myself right here."

Sõma smirked, knowing full well she was lying. She even just admitted a few seconds ago she was bored. How could one girl be so stubborn and contradicting all the time? Sõma looked around and saw most of the guests were on the dance floor and decided that's what they should do.

"Come on, let's dance." Sõma reached out his hand to her.

"D-Dance!" Erina's face flushed completely. "N-No! I'm not dancing. Especially with you!"

Sõma gave her an unimpressed look and cocked his head.

"Well if you're not going to dance with me, that's fine. I'm still going to tell people tomorrow you danced with me at some fancy ball. That's sure to create some friendly rumors huh?" The red head teased.

"You wouldn't!" Erina's eyes grew wide, completely skeptical of his claim.

"I don't know, maybe…"

"This is blackmail!"

"No, this is called having fun." Before Erina could retort, Sõma grabbed her hand and dragged her to the dance floor. Erina mentally cursed him all the way through, completely flustered at her current predicament. She tugged on her hand to pull free but he kept a firm grip on her. He wasn't letting go.

'_This man, he's getting too comfortable with me,' _Erina thought disdainfully.

Eventually giving up, Erina bit down hard on her pride and found herself on the dance floor. As soon as they got there, a new song, a slow ballad, started to play.

'_Hmph, Great'_ Erina thought sarcastically.

"One dance Yukihira-kun." She said it with no room for discussion.

Sõma gave her a wry smile. "Sure thing."

He placed his left hand around her waist and Erina in turn placed her right hand on his shoulder. Sõma then grabbed her left hand with his right and they began a slow waltz.

Erina was completely flushed. Just being this close to a boy, let alone it being Yukihira Sõma, was causing her face to be painted cherry red. She kept her head bowed the whole time, though that didn't help to stop her embarrassment since now her forehead occasionally made contact with his warm chest. In fact, Erina was increasingly getting more embarrassed and flustered as the dance went on. He was way too close to her now.

'_Yukihira Sõma_,' Erina inwardly groaned his name. _'He always keeps finding ways to put me these situations… why is this always happening to me?'_

There was no way on this planet she was going to let him see her face. She didn't want to look up and see his cocky grin that she was sure he was wearing. She would die before he could see her embarrassment. However she feared her body was betraying her.

Their clasped hands felt like they were on fire to her. She could barely keep grip of his hand without feeling so weak as to let go. Luckily enough for her, Sõma held her hand tightly. And then there was the one that lingered on her waist. It permeated with such heat, she thought it would burn right through her dress. The fact that her dress already stuck so tightly to her body made it feel like he was gripping her bare flesh.

The little princess' imagination was running wild as the dance continued, and with every passing second the heat she felt in her legs, on her face, and undeniably in her chest was getting hotter.

Then something caught Erina's attention! Something that would easily enough, distract her from her embarrassment. As she kept her head down she noticed Sõma's movements, his dancing… they were… off.

She noticed how every time she took a step, he barely reacted just in time to match hers.

Then it hit her, he had no idea how to ballroom dance! He wasn't even taking the lead. He was just reacting to her movement and adjusting as quickly as he could.

Erina smirked and looked up at him. Her prior embarrassment rapidly gone, and her cheeks only slightly flushed, now recovered. She casted him her typical domineering gaze, one Sõma had seen many times over from her.

"You force me onto the dance floor, and you can barely do something as simple as a Waltz?"

Sõma just grinned at her. "Oh so you've noticed? Just give me a little bit more time to get used to the movements ok?"

He said it more like a statement rather than a question seeking her approval. Erina unconsciously did as he said, a bit intrigued by his proposition. Over a few seconds, Sõma indeed started to adjust. She watched as he looked around the other dancers on the floor, and started mimicking their steps, and then eventually asserting their movements into their own waltz. It wasn't long until he was actually leading her, as he should have done from the start. He was indeed a fast learner. He didn't even need anyone to teach him.

This ability, she had seen it before when he had his Shokugeki with Mimasaka during the Autumn Election. His ability to just create on the go, adapt, and just do. Even Erina couldn't deny this was one area where he excelled in.

Soon enough he was leading her on the floor without even looking for help.

"See, told you give me a second." He shot her another toothy grin.

"Hmph, the only redeemable quality about you is that you're a quick learner." Erina's blush started to rise again.

Undoubtedly, Yukihira Sõma was a man that continued to impress her.

Sõma smiled at that as he continued to perfect the dance. "Coming from you, that's quite the praise Erina."

Erina reddened at his boldness, her cheeks now quite colored. "S-shut up! And I told you, it's Nakiri to y-"

Before Erina could finish Sõma dipped her spontaneously causing her to let out a small shriek.

The boy then pulled her back up and chuckled. He was having too much fun with this.

"Y-you jerk! That was not part of the dance!"

"Who said anything about following the dance? Now that I got the movements down, I'll add something's in here or there."

"Hmph, just like your cooking. You're always trying to change thi-"

Again Erina couldn't finish her sentence as Yukihira sent her out into a twirl, and like a yo-yo, pulled her back into his arms.

Erina shot him a fierce glare and Sõma just continued to laugh.

"Yukihira-kun! You're doing this on purpose!"

"Am I?" As the song ended Sõma dipped her one last time to the beat and held her there until the music started to fade out slowly.

Erina swore time must have stopped. She must have been staring into his bright golden orbs for what seemed like an eternity. His wicked smile and that playful glint in his eyes would forever be scarred into her memory. There was no way she could ever forget such a look… such a face… dare she say it?

_Handsome?_

Sõma pulled her back up, jarring Erina out of her trance, and letting her go now that the song was over.

"Whew that worked up quite the sweat," the boy teased. "Man how long are those songs? That felt like an hour. And all you do is go around in a circle over and over! I feel a bit dizzy."

Erina just nodded. She was still a bit in a daze. She couldn't believe she had danced with her rival. And to add to the fact that it was actually enjoyable, she was at a loss for words.

"Hey, the next song is about to start. Wanna go for part two? I still got one more in me." Sõma extended his hand to her.

"I-I told you didn't I? One dance."

"Oh yeah," said Sõma. He scratched his head a bit in what seemed like an apologetic look. "Alright lets-"

"B-But!" Erina stopped him. "I g-guess, I can… do one more…"

Erina practically whispered that last part. The shame of it all, she couldn't contain her humiliation. She just grabbed his hand again, and pressed up against his chest. She kept her head down however; again she didn't want to make contact with his eyes. She was too afraid. Too afraid of what her eyes might show, too afraid that she was actually showing signs that she, just might... approve of him.

Sõma just smiled. He didn't say anything. He just hummed along to the song as he lead part two of their waltz.

Time had flown by with their dancing. Without realizing it, the pair had actually danced the night away. By the end of their umpteenth round, the ball was nearing its end.

The pair then decided to get their stuff and head on out. Sõma walked back Erina to her table and she got her clutch. On the table, there was also a small note with her name on it. Judging by the handwriting she could tell it was her grandfathers.

"_Erina" _it started. "_Looks like your having fun. This will do wonders for your teamwork in the classroom. I knew asking Sõma to come was a good idea. Also I've taken the liberty of retiring early for the night. These old bones need their rest. I'll leave your care in the hands of Yukihira-kun."_

As Erina finished the note she could practically feel all the blood rush to her face. Her grandfather did it again! He just couldn't leave things be. And the fact that he favored Yukihira Sõma only made it worse.

"What's up Nakiri?" Sõma asked curiously. "What are you reading?"

"N-Nothing important!" Erina clenched the note in her hands and crumbled it up. There was no way she would ever let him see what was written on there. Picking up her plate, she went and placed it for clean up and threw away the note in a nearby trash can.

Sõma followed her in suit and put his dishes away as well.

The two then made their way outside after making sure they had all their things.

"I guess its time to head home. I'll see you tomorrow ok? Was fun." Sõma then turned and headed towards his bike rack.

"W-Wait! Yukihira-kun…"

"Hmm?" Sõma turned to her.

"Well, you see…" Erina started. She twiddled with her fingers trying to find the right words while keeping down the growing blush on her face. She swore, the amount of times she blushed today, her face would remain red for the rest of her life.

'_Darn you grandfather! Why must you put me in this situation!'_

"Yeah?"

"Umm… I kind of…" No she would not stoop that low. Erina decided against asking him for a ride. The blonde was a prideful woman, with enough pride to practically sink the titanic ten times over. There was no way she was going to ask him. He was her rival after all. She didn't want to be become friends with him. She hated Sõma. Right?

_Right?_

"N-Nothing. Never mind!" Erina then started to walk down the steps and made her way in what she thought was the direction home.

Sõma raised a brow at this and shook his head. He knew what she was alluding to without her needing to ask. When first stepping outside he had realized there were almost no cars parked. They were part of the last group leaving the ball.

"Wait right here."

Without any further words he went and retrieved his bike, and then pulled around to where he had Erina waiting.

With that infamous boyish smirk he always wore, he said "and your carriage awaits mi'lady" in a forced and awfully terrible British accent. He was clearly doing it on purpose.

Erina rolled her eyes in a surprisingly playful manner and made her way onto his bike. "You're lame Yukihira-kun. And also, I did not ask for this ride. You offered, and as it being my only means of transportation, I am forced to accept."

Sõma chuckled at that. Really, Erina sure had a weird way of saying thanks. The little princess tucked her dress under her and sat in the space provided. She then wrapped her arms around his waist and Sõma took off.

It was her second time now on his bike. Erina was starting to get the feeling that this was going to be something regular for them, though this was something she could get used to...

Not that she wanted to get used to it of course! It's just that, she "_could" _get used to it… at least that's what Erina told herself.

"Hey, think we'll make it back in time for the real party? I wonder what they're doing at Alice's."

"Hmmm…" Erina hummed into his back. "Who knows? Also, you will tell no one of tonight, understand!"

Sõma grinned at her request. "Ok, but you need to be more cooperative when we work together. And that means you need to respond when I talk to you, and you need to at least listen to my suggestions. Ok?"

Erina let out a small growl. "I'll bite you Yukihira-kun."

"W-What!" Sõma was completely caught off guard. He must not have heard her right. '_What did she say?'_

Erina arched her back and raised her head so now her mouth was only a few spaces away from his collarbone. Sõma could feel her hot breath near his neck, and it sent a few shivers down his spine.

"I said I will bite you," she threatened. "You will not tell a soul, or else…"

"H-Hey!" Sõma tried to focus on the road ahead. She was completely distracting him. Her grip on his abdomen tightened and Sõma could feel her chest pressing harder into his back. This caused the boy to slightly blush, a rare occurrence for the teen. Sõma could then feel her brush her teeth slightly against his neck. "N-Nakiri, what's gotten into you?" '_Was she that stubborn that she would resort to biting him than accepting his part of the agreement?'_

Erina didn't answer him. Instead she gave him a command. "You will comply in five seconds or else." She then pressed her teeth deep into his collarbone. Sõma's back straightened up and another shiver went down his spine. Erina was waiting for him to answer. If he didn't succumb to her wishes, she was going to bite him.

Starting to feel Erina's jaw tightening Sõma quickly made up his mind.

"F-Fine! I wont tell anyone, promise!" The redhead had given in. He couldn't focus. Any longer and he was sure he would be crashing the bike. Erina was making his mind race. If he were to lose focus and ended up crashing, and if something by god was to happen to the Tōtsuki princess, there would be a fine price to pay. The whole Nakiri family would probably hunt him down.

Erina removed her mouth from his neck and smirked.

"Good boy. Now get me home." Erina then rested her head on his back.

"Y-Yeah…" was all Sõma could say. He was just taken aback. What in the world just happened! Feeling the blonde's grip on his waist slacken slightly he calmed down and just decided to focus on getting them back home safely. He had to clear his mind on the recent events. Thinking about what just transpired only made him think bad thoughts. Maybe he should have gone to Alice's party instead…

Erina smirked. For once! Literally this was the first time she could remember, she had gotten the better of him. He put her through so much embarrassment as of late and over the years. She was glad she could return a little bit of it right back at him. He had it coming for so long. So what if she played a bit dirty? He uses his tricks to put her in compromising situations as well.

Erina gave his waist another squeeze and Sõma stiffened up accordingly. Her smirk grew wider.

'_Yes. It's indeed fun to win once in a while…"_

* * *

**Edit: 4.3 3:04PM, 7/27/15**

Just made the changes **th3archivist**! Thanks for the help! I kept messing around with it after you pointed that out, it was actually annoying me the more I looked at it. I wanted to keep the word "for" in there for some reason LMAO. I don't know why, I just feel like that word belongs there haha. But I ended up removing it in the end because I can see what you were saying. Also changed both of the the first "got" to "gets," to match the tenses. Thanks much ;)

**Edit: 4.2 10:35PM, 7/26/15**

Thanks for all the corrections **Kusabi**! Really do appreciate it. I am a bit rusty after all. Having someone proof read my work is always awesome! And wow, I seem to be having a bit of trouble with contractions... hmmm... I need to get better with those.

Also like you said, I added a quick summary of the previous 3 chapters up top. I think thats a great idea since I went on hiatus for so long. ;)

**Authors Note:** Ok, so I just want to start off by saying, I AM THANKFUL FOR ALL THE PEOPLE THAT HAVE STUCK WITH THIS STORY AND REVIEWED, FAVORITED, AND ADDED IT TO ALERT OVER THE YEARS!

THIS SUPER LONG CHAPTER IS DEDICATED TO ALL OF YOU!

Honestly, thank you. And trust me when I say, I have read every single one of your reviews, and add to favorites and such. I saw them all. Really, wow, I love you guys.

Now, I don't want to dwell on the long wait for an update. We all knew I took forever. I'm not going to waste time apologizing, I was wrong to leave you all hanging like that. I'm just going to say sorry, for it is all I can do.

Now WOW! The Shokugeki community sure has grown! There are so many fics now! I'm going to have to spend this week of mines reading them all! HAHAH. Like really guys, WOW our little community has grown so big! AND THE ANIME! LIKE there is so much I want to say but, it would just take up too much.

For the sake of not adding to the length of an already long chap, I'll just respond to a few reviews that need specific answers. Everyone else, I promise I have read your reviews! Thank your for all the support!

**Kiukun-Nadralexe: **Yes! OMG So hard to write a visual foodgasm. Really tough. But I'm glad I was able to pull that off for you. I wanted everyone to get the image I had in my mind. Hopefully that was conveyed well enough haha

**RayRay: **Dude! That worked! I guess because it was under M, it did not show up. Duh, I'm slow! Thanks man.

**An Average Writer:** From way back then man, thank you again for that long post. Honestly, I've never seen anyone write so much before for a review! Lol. I think I might have the longest review in the world on FF. I've never seen a longer post. ;p

**Dianne060807: **I have thought about the Hayama x Megumi ship. Honestly she bears so much resemblance in personality to Jun that I decided to put them in a group to play with that idea. I'm still thinking about it.

**NotYourAverageBooty: **Glad you loved the story! And yes, I realized that when the anime came out and they called him Yukihira! XD I was like wow, all this time, my brain just misread his name. Like wow, I just never noticed. I was such in denial about the name thing that I was looking up everywhere. Lol.

**Darkmist111:** Hmm? I'm not really sure about if I want to actually touch that subject. Not because I can't because I can totally write up something really cool. But I just feel, if information about his mother does come up at some point in the manga, then it will be completely different from the character I made sine we know nothing about her. And I want to keep this story as relevant as possible. I started this story literally when SnS was just blowing up, and I feel like even though its been that long of a time, the fact that I have stayed away from certain subjects has still kept this fic relevant without feeling outdated. Hence I'm going to stay away from the mother aspect, only because in the long future, it might make this story dated if information does come out.

**Senbei x Cup Ramen:** Hhaha! Thank you so much! I'm glad you enjoyed it! And Wow! Thank you for informing me of that! I had no idea my story was stolen and posted somewhere as someone else. I'm really disappointed that happened. I'm definitely not a young Japanese girl lol. I'm a hard working, just finished college, stressed out, American boy. XD. I worked very hard on this story and to have it stolen and reposted under someone else is a bit annoying. I know I haven't updated in 2 years, but that does not mean my story should be plagiarized. Well, I won't file for any plagiarism or anything like that. I hope that person deep down realizes what they did and someday at least message me and apologize. I appreciate your effort SXCR! Really, thank you for taking a stand for my story when I was not present. I appreciate that a lot. Oh wells, I wont say no more on that topic. I guess I'll just say this.

"Imitation is the highest form of flattery."


	5. Jealousy Is Thy Name

**Year Three**

_Jealousy Is Thy Name_

Undeniably, she found herself becoming more and more annoyed.

Because of herself for being in this position…

_And because of a certain someone…_

She had no idea when this feeling of annoyance had started. All she knew was that it was present, it was real, and without hold, completely directed at one person.

Said person being none other than our lovable Tadokoro Megumi, whom had done absolutely nothing wrong.

The students of the third year waited outside their classroom having arrived a bit early, awaiting their professor Nakiri Senzaemon to come and open up the doors. From a few feet away, not daring to get involved with the bunch in front of her, Nakiri Erina watched the pigtailed girl in pure irritation.

The way she smiled, the way she fidgeted when she was nervous, the way she gripped onto his arm whenever she had a question.

_Or possibly whenever she felt like it…_

Erina grit her teeth.

The actions from Yukihira Sõma didn't help the matter either. The way he treated Tadokoro was different from anyone else. He would give her special attention and always give her the brightest of smiles, one that could possibly (in Erina's mind at least) outshine the sun. He would also playfully touch her when proving a point, unbeknownst to him causing the navy haired girl to blush furiously.

It's not like she noticed these things or watched keenly or anything like that! It's just… she just saw it.

Everyone did.

They were like an unofficial PERFECT couple; the kind and charming Sõma with the endearing and overly caring Megumi. They were like the pair that you would see in some Disney movie with the dashing prince and the damsel princess.

_In Erina's mind, it was just ALL annoying. _

The blonde looked away, blatant frustration in her eyes. She couldn't tolerate the over sappiness and the giddy look Megumi was directing to Soma.

She liked Tadokoro… She approved of Tadokoro... So why was she annoyed? Why couldn't she stop this childish feeling from building up inside of her.

Just what is this stupid feeling that's making her sick in the stomach?

"Is something a matter Erina-sama?" asked Hisako, worry clearly painted on her features. She could tell something was up with Erina. She could practically feel it. Being so close to the blonde for so many years, there was not much Erina could hide from her.

"N-No…" Erina stuttered slightly. "Nothing is wrong." She didn't want to say. Normally she would of told Hisako. But even Erina knew how childish she was being. She didn't want to trouble her aid with something so petty.

"Ok…" Hisako responded. She knew something was up. But she wasn't going to pester her Erina-sama. When she felt like speaking, she would speak. Instead, the pinkette turned to the group in front of her and watched them much like Erina had before.

"You know, I was wondering… how did Sõma-kun get that mark?"

Erina closed her eyes and shrugged.

"I don't know, the idiot probably cut himself while cooking or something…"

"No, not that mark," Hisako said. "The one on his neck… it looks like he got bit by a small cat or something…"

Erina couldn't fight the smirk that forced its way on her face. She took a sneak peek back at the group and indeed it was present.

A bright red small circular mark on the red head's neck; small enough to go unnoticed unless you were staring.

Her grin materialized a bit more. The mark she left on his neckline giving her some sort of satisfaction.

Hisako always knew what to say, even if she didn't realize it. She had no idea how much she meant to Erina.

"You're amazing Hisako…"

"Huh?"

* * *

As midday hit, Erina was practically begging for the day to be done with. She made her way to the school cafeteria, making sure before hand to take some Advil for the undying headache she was enduring. She was a wreck so far, and she couldn't help it. Her mood to describe the first half of the day was probably similar to that of a pregnant woman. She was irritated, frustrated, embarrassed, flustered, and so much more. She was thankful she had no other classes with that man other than the main one with her grandfather.

Her irritation from that morning had only intensified into frustration when her usual partnership with Sõma began. He was up to his usual antics again, trying to make crazy additions to dishes and such. That undeniably led to a big disagreement, where in the end, Erina was left flustered and embarrassed.

Tōtsuki Culinary Academy, without say, had probably the grandest of all cafeterias for their prized students. And one would think rightfully so, considering it is regarded as one of the best cooking schools in Japan, and on the international level.

Two whole buildings were dedicated for their undergraduates dining pleasure, connected by a lower hallway. The first building (technically the left side) was dedicated for students that could order food served by various Tōtsuki staff, and the second (the right), was dedicated for students who would much rather make their own meal.

Depending on how students felt they could even have the best of both worlds.

The true beauty of the extravagant cafeteria was not just down to the sheer size of the two building monstrosity, but the finely crafted balcony area connecting the two buildings.

This area was made so anyone from above could watch all the happenings below. However, this part of the cafeteria was exclusive to only privileged students of the school, for example Elite Ten members and those lucky enough to make it to their third year.

Nakiri Erina made her way to the private table shared by her and Hisako up in the aforementioned balcony area.

She placed her tray down and let her bag sit on the floor by her chair before taking her seat. She gave Hisako a warm smile, which the pink haired teen returned immediately. Erina picked up her cup of tea and took a sip, sighing in relief as the warm liquid was helping tremendously with the throbbing in her head.

There was nothing more like a nice cup of herbal tea to ease the mind.

Hisako looked at Erina's barren tray, only containing a small bowl with some salad in it and a cup holder for the tea Erina was currently sipping on. The girl then looked towards her tray, containing a large spaghetti platter with the works; meatballs, Parmesan and all that included. As refreshment, she even dared to have a Coke – not even diet at that. She blushed embarrassingly noticing how much of a glutton she was being, while Erina on the other hand had practically nothing.

She knew the importance of a healthy meal. She specialized in medical gastronomy! But today she just felt like pigging out. There was nothing wrong with letting loose once in a while. But compared to what Erina was having, it made her really self-conscious.

The blond just laughed noticing her aid's discomfort.

"It's ok Hisako, I had to taste test a bunch of dishes a little while back, I'm not very hungry. You go on, eat up."

Hisako nodded appreciatively and began her meal under Erina's warm smile. The Tōtsuki princess then casted her gaze from Hisako to the dining floor below, and tried to refrain from rolling her eyes.

Below them, Yukihira Sõma and co. were up to their usual antics. Judging by what was going on, Sõma was coercing a group of first years to try one of his dishes. However Megumi, Ryōko, and Shun were presumably all telling them it's a bad idea. Ikumi and Takumi however were deviously encouraging the first years to go ahead and try it.

"Why they decide to have their lunch down there is beyond me," Erina stated.

Hisako looked to where Erina was watching and grinned. "That's just like Yukihira-kun, I wouldn't expect anything else."

Erina only hummed in accordance with that answer, knowing her aid was spot on. She gave Megumi another envious look, by now she was guessing the girl could practically feel her gaze. Her eyes then moved to Soma and they lingered a bit on his neck, again causing her to smirk.

She took another sip of her tea. The mark was pleasing her to an unlimited extent. Every time she looked at it, she couldn't help the little rush it gave her. She was practically thanking herself for being so daring those few nights ago.

It was like she was a carnivore, practically a lioness, proud to have marked her prey. She couldn't help but think of Megumi as a cute and cuddly deer; powerless to do anything to stop her while she feasted on poor Sõma. Why in the world she was playing out these fantasies in her head, even she didn't know. But the thought of it all was none-the-less amusing to her.

Erina let out a sigh… She was definitely a mess. She should feel ashamed for feeling so vindictive towards another, especially one as kind and honest as Megumi. God, she was even starting to feel a bit of guilt. Erina was also sure the innocent girl had no idea she was on the receiving end of all these spiteful thoughts.

"Erina! Hisako!"

The pair turned and saw Alice approaching them with her own tray; Hisako feeling much relieved Alice's was just as filled with food as hers. The snow-white princess placed her platter on the table and then pulled up a seat between Hisako and Erina, beaming at the two.

"How's it going?"

"Going good!" Hisako answered. Alice normally sat with them from time to time, so it wasn't all that strange that she showed up. "Where's Ryō?"

"Oh, he's off with Akira and doing boy stuff. I don't know," Alice waved off nonchalantly, a hint of jealousy in her voice. "Jeez, he's supposed to be by my side at all times. I'll have to punish him! Hisako, won't you be my aid instead!"

"No," answered Erina before Hisako could even respond. "Hisako is mine," she said possessively. The aide blushed at Erina's overprotectiveness. Even if Erina hadn't replied for her, surely the young princess would of known that the answer would have been the same. Hisako would never leave her.

"Aww boo-hoo, why do you always have to ruin my fun! Oh well, I guess torturing Ryō for leaving me will make good plans for later today."

Content with Alice's answer, Erina turned her attention back to the events happening below. It seemed like Sõma, Ikumi, and Takumi had convinced the first years to try Sõma's concoction.

"_Those first years have no idea what they're in for," _Erina thought grimly.

This time it was Alice that followed her gaze and smiled wickedly. This reminded her of why she was here in the first place.

"Oh dear cousin," the silver haired vixen started. "I was wondering… how is the partnership between you and Sõma-kun going? Things sure were lively today."

Erina then turned to her cousin curiously. _"Just what is she getting at?"_

"It's been fine I suppose, though I could do without him trying to redefine all the dishes we make." Erina answered.

"Just fine?" Alice poked on.

Erina's eyes narrowed. _"It was as if she's trying to hint at something…"_

"Y-Yes, just fine." Erina didn't mean to stammer there, but just talking about the subject was causing her to slightly fluster. Sõma kind of had that affect on her.

"Hmmm…" Alice continued to eye Erina, for what reasons the blonde did not know.

Hisako watched the exchanges quietly while eating her meal, not wanting to butt in. Conversations normally between Erina and Alice were fought solely between the two. As much as Hisako thought Alice to be a bit wicked, she held the highest of respect for her. Her cooking skill was top notch and let it not be forgotten, she was a Nakiri after all.

"I guess that dance meant nothing after all then…"

"D-D-Dance!" Erina shrieked. Her heart rate immediately jumped to a zillion times per second. "W-What do you mean, dance?"

This piqued Hisako's interest too. What dance? Is she talking about that game they played at her house? DDR was the name if she recalled correctly.

Alice's smile turned into a devilish grin seeing Erina's whole attitude change. "Oh you know," she drawled, trying to keep up the suspense. "The one between you and Yukihira-kun…. At. The. Charity. Ball." She spelled out the last four words nice and slow for Erina. She was loving every bit of this.

Erina started to shake slightly. Her initial impulse was to scream, completely mortified that her cousin knew about her dance with _that_ man. There was no way she knew… "_She couldn't have known!_"

"I-I don't know what your talking about." Erina crossed her arms and turned her face, completely red. She would fake ignorance until proven guilty.

Hisako continued to munch quietly. As much as Erina was being tormented, she really did want to know about this so-called dance. One thing was for sure; this was definitely not related to the Dance-Dance game… but back to the situation at hand, Erina dancing with Sõma! This had to be a lie right? Some fallacy Alice created up like usual? Or… was this the reason her Erina-sama has been on edge lately. She had to know.

"Sure you don't… Then I guess you have no idea what this is either huh?" Alice reached into her skirt pocket and pulled out a small envelope. "Care to explain this?"

She put the envelope on the table and slid it over to Erina.

Erina looked at the small mail and reached for it slowly. Her mind was racing with what could be in it. She was scared to find out what was inside, but not knowing was killing her.

She swallowed hard, picked up the envelope, and slowly opened it.

Her eyes immediately shot open! She was frozen. _There was no way!_ The envelope dropped and in Erina's hand was a single photo.

A simple but elegant picture of Erina resting her head on Sõma's chest as he held her tightly during their waltz was captured expertly. Her eyes were shut, and her cheeks were burning red, and there was even a slight pout on her face. But if anyone knew Erina, and Alice was definitely one of those people, Erina looked genuinely happy.

The Tōtsuki princess looked from the photo to Alice. "How did you get this?" Her voice was deadly, holding a small amount of venom in them. She had recovered from her shock instantaneously. And rightfully so, she needed to be thinking calmly now. She needed to find out where Alice had gotten this photo immediately!

Hisako couldn't help her curiosity and leaned over a bit towards Erina to get a glimpse of the photo. Her reaction practically mirrored Erina's as soon as she caught sight of the photograph. Hell! She practically choked on her spaghetti and had to wash it down with her drink. She then bent her head and stared at her plate like it was the most important thing on the planet. She was definitely NOT getting in this convo…

"Oh dear cousin, I got it from our school newspaper club of course. You know, that journalist kid that's friends with Sõma? He was there that night and took the photo of you two."

Erina immediately shot out her seat; she needed to get to that newspaper club immediately before this got out. If this were to spread around school she had no idea what she would do. Just thinking about it was starting to make her stomach burn.

Alice however waved her off and told her to retake her seat already predicting what Erina was planning.

"Calm down Erina! Come now, you're my cousin. We may have our differences but I would never let something like this get out without your permission."

"Alice…" Erina didn't know what to say. Did her cousin actually save her? Or was she lying and buying time, stopping her from actually preventing a soon to be catastrophe. She had no idea. Alice was a bit wicked and playful, at least in Erina's mind, but she wasn't cruel or evil.

Alice pouted, seeing the skeptical look on Erina's face.

"Hey! Why are you looking at me like that! We're family! We may be rivals you know but you're still my cousin after all!"

Erina honestly was still speechless. The events were just too much for her. She had no idea what she was more shocked at. A photo of her and Sõma surfacing that captured the incontrovertibly good time she had at the charity ball, or the shock news that her cousin had actually prevented probably the biggest most embarrassing moment of her life.

"Thank you." Erina looked deeply into Alice's eyes. "I mean it with everything I am… thank you."

Alice beamed happily at Erina.

"Jeez, you're going to make me blush," she teased. Erina then shared a small laugh with her cousin, now back at ease.

Hisako looked between the two and smiled. "_Now if only they were like this all the time,"_ she thought fondly.

"It's funny because it was all coincidence I found out you know," Alice began. Erina nodded for her to continue, honestly interested as to how this situation came about.

"I was just making my way to one of my labs, which so happen to be by the newspaper club's office. And that's when I saw him, making copies of that photo, presumably to put on the school paper."

"What did he do with the copies?" Erina asked hastily. She trusted her cousin would have taken care of it but she couldn't help herself from asking. She was in a state of semi-panic.

"Erina, I told you calm down." The blonde nodded at her cousin and sighed knowing she was right. She had to relax. Seeing Erina settling back down and picking up her tea, Alice continued. "I'll just skip all the details, its not important. What _is_ important is that I had him burn all the copies, and I took the original photo from him. Also I made him promise not to tell a soul, or else…" Alice finished darkly.

Erina found herself laughing lightly at Alice's threat. She wondered if she looked and sounded like that at times. God, this was undeniable proof they were definitely related. And she said she had the boy burn the copies? Wow... burning was definitely a bit on the extreme end but she was thankful. She would have to repay her cousin for this someday.

"In your hand is the only copy."

Erina looked at the photo, and her face immediately started to burn. Memories of that night came flooding back to her. The way he held her, the way she rested against him, the way he twirled and dipped her.

Alice just smirked and Hisako continued to drown herself in her food. Though the pink haired girl could not keep down the blush she had on as well. The photo alone was causing her great embarrassment and she wasn't even in it. She could only begin to imagine how Erina was feeling.

"So," Alice began, now looking at Erina. "This explains why Sõma-kun didn't show up to my party."

Hisako couldn't help but nod at that, now also knowing where Sõma was that night. She couldn't deny she was also curious when he was missing at Alice's party, after he was so determined to go.

"Hmm…" was all Erina added. She just continued to look at the photo. She could rip it up into a million pieces and toss it away and that would be the end of it. There would be no evidence against her that said night ever happened. But something made her want to keep it. She couldn't keep her eyes off of it. It brought some kind of random warmth to her heart. Just looking at the photo removed any trace of the headache she had since morning.

Placing the picture on the table and reaching into her bag, Erina hesitantly pulled out her diary and opened it to the page where she kept the photo of herself and her idol Jōichirō. Even after finding out he was Sõma's dad, it was not enough to remove him from this special place in her diary. He was flawless in her mind. Not even helping to give birth to the only invader in her sanctuary tainted the image she had of him. Much like his cooking, he was perfect.

She looked upon the photo of her younger self fondly. Then picked up the one with her and Sõma and analyzed it. From the outside, Erina just seemed to be lost in thought; and Hisako and Alice were content with letting her be. But on the inside, it was a WAR. Erina was fighting a battle with herself whether to keep the picture, or do like Alice had done and have it burned.

The internal deliberation was intense. If she kept this photo, then that meant she approved of him; the fact whether she would let him know or not was a whole different story. But if she kept the photo, then deep down, no matter how many times she would deny it, that meant she approved of this man.

It was a hard decision, and Erina couldn't help but feeling like she was fighting a losing battle. She bit her lip, and daringly… placed the photo inside her diary next to the one with her and Jōichirō.

She couldn't help but shake her head afterwards. First a photo with Jōichirō, now a photo with Sõma. What is it about those two Yukihira men that had this affect on her? She closed the diary and placed it back into her bag.

Alice and Hisako watched Erina with much interest. While Hisako watched on innocently, a fierce blush playing on her features, Alice wore a sly smile, one that could even rival the infamous Cheshire cat. What she was thinking, she'd save that for another convo. She was happy with the current events, and hummed to herself before starting to eat.

Erina looked away and went back to watching the events below. She took another look at Sõma and sighed. She had no idea what was happening to her. The feelings that were building up in her chest these past few weeks… she had no experience in dealing with them.

They were making her emotionally unstable; and to make matters worse Soma seemed to be perfectly fine. Erina closed her eyes and squeezed really hard.

This was distracting her. It was taking away too much time from her cooking. It was making her behave like some lovesick teenager.

Nakiri Erina had no time for love. She did not want it, nor did she need it... at least that's what the blonde told herself.

Opening up her eyes again, she realized what she must do.

Her resolve now stronger than ever, Erina came to terms with how she was going to deal with this. She would fix her emotional instability. She would remove the source of the problem, right at the root. She would abolish that man as much as possible from her daily routine. He was preoccupying too much of her time, and more importantly, her thoughts.

Erina took another sip of her tea. It had to be done...

_She was going to avoid Yukihira Sõma._

* * *

**Edit 5.3 10:20AM, 9/11/15**

Thanks Kusabi! Finished making the changes. As always, appreciate your editing ^_^

**Edit 5.2 3:13AM, 9/3/2015**

Edited some parts where I realized words were missing, commas, and such. No matter how much peer editing I do myself, after a few days, I come back and look at it and I see so many errors. Ugh, I even wait a while before posting chapters just for that reason... oh well I guess somethings cannot be avoided. Also edited a bit of the ending to better suit my liking.

**Authors Note:** Hehe well… that's another chapter done. ;) A very heavy focused Erina chapter this one. Not much of everyone else but it was needed. Remember Erina is a girl who does not know love. She has no time for it nor does she want it.

So to me, I think she would be confused about what she's feeling. And her only solution would be… removing it haha.

**Also this chapter, I'm splitting it up. It was actually WAY longer, but it conveyed two different points. So in the end, I decided to split it and the second half will be the next chapter.**

**The next chapter will be heavy Soma Erina fluff lol. And the good thing is… I've already written it thanks to this chapter being so initially long, so I'll probably put it up by the end of the week as soon as I finish editing it to my liking ;) It's still a bit incomplete since I'm struggling to write a particular scene but I want to get it perfect for you guys ^_^**

Now onto reviews… WOW, such F%&amp;*$^! Much! I love you guys! Really, I read every review and it just made my day. You guys are awesome. I write for you. And when you leave me reviews and let me know how I'm doing, it just makes me really happy.

**KKona: **Thanks! Glad to be back.

**a.k.a. Kusabi **– As noted in the previous chap. notes, thanks for the edit friend. I appreciate it ;)

**Gabriel690 **– I will try. I tend to take really long to update because 1. I rewrite things over and over, and 2. I'm lazy lol.

**Louis Lucifer** – Thanks. I try hard to keep her just like the Erina we know and love. Btw, that Nanatsu No Taizai icon… I'm a Greed Fan XD

**Debdub – **Hehe… Yeah it has been. Sorry for the wait.

**Animecutylover** – Yeah, I didn't put Soma number one because then… there would be no conflict lol. And yeah, she expected something to happen. She had no idea what lol. Maybe a kiss? Lol Who knows. And look, I updated and it's only been what? A month? hehe. Is that good enough? Don't worry; next chap will be out in a week since it's practically already done.

**XD** – Calling my story a spoiler for the actual manga… wow. Such praise LMAO. I'm flattered. And I will definitely continue. No worries ;p

**booklover1209 **– Aren't they? They're just too cute.

**TeddyHugs – **Hehe, my good friend Teddy! You got a personal message from me 3

**Your Fan **– Wow! I have a fan, literally named "Your Fan" LMAO. And man, telling me I should be a novelist… oh wow. Such praise, such honor. Hehe. Holy crap, you make me feel amazing with reviews like this haha. I practice. Practice makes everyone better. The more one writes, the better they get ;p

**OTPIchiRuki3 **– No, you're awesome. Cuz you reviewed ;) All my reviewers are awesome lol.

**purplesparkz02 **– Hahah. Erina was a bit bold last chapter. Now she's reaping her rewards in this one lol.

**th3archivist **– As with Kusabi, thanks archivist! ;p

**Blond Dude 42 **– Yeah, Erina is definitely more dere here. But, I'm not sure if you read the manga but she's definitely been coming around lately. And considering this is their third year (and not their first), I think this might be how they are lol. Unless Erina stays like how she now for the rest of her years LMAO.

**darkmist111** – I got to agree with you there my friend lol.

**Jack - **3

**ZeroDarkNex14** – Thank you. I want that to be something very important in my fic. I want to develop and show how they start to like each other. Other wise, I would just get bored. I like conflict and humor in love rather than sap romance lol. And hold on to your breath my friend. You will need it for the next chapter. Much will go down with Sorina. XD

**Ryner510** – Hehe, I think so too.

**NlorenZo **– Lol. I don't want to be conceited and say a mine is the best. There are tons of great SNS fanfics on this site; we got to show them all love. But I'm flattered that I am your favorite. It makes me happy knowing I'm someone's fave. I thank you ;p

**Eiiychan **– Haha. And keeping it rolling we will. Thank you, I try hard in writing them the way I think they would behave. Thank you for the favorite and review ;)

**Demon Damian **– WOW. My story is a flower waiting to bloom. ^_^ My friend, you should get into poetry. That was a very good line ;)

**East Coast Captain – **Haha. I agree with all that you've said. I would pin them together as well. Megumi is lovable, but there is no conflict. To me, it's kind of dull. With Erina, I find it very entertaining haha.

**Guest 1** – Haha It's definitely too real. Cuteness overload!

**Dead Pann** – Clearly you have a crystal ball my friend, as you saw I would be using that mark in the future chapter, which is this one. ;p

**Guest 2** – Well... it definitely is the beginning of something lmao. Would I call it love? Who knows lol.

**Abhishekbssn – **Thank you for your kind words. And you are welcome. Seeing reviews like this make me so happy knowing that other people enjoy my work.

**strikefreedom20a** – lol. I hope this was fast enough ;) Don't worry; the next will be up quicker since its already/mostly done.

**kvothe08 – **Hahah. I made you a believer huh? Reminds me of that Shrek song, Now I'm A Believer! Loll. And thank you, ;)

**Arbitually – **Nakiri-sensei is definitely a shipper LMAO. I got that feeling from him right from the start of the manga. And he's been hinted at it since forth. And I love where the manga is headed! OMG do you see the current ARC !? I hope Soma becomes her knight in shining armor hahaha. Like that? Like the purpose of the number one seed being a knight is actually being used for foreshadowing Soma being Erina's knight? That would be nice plot writing there… Or I could just be looking too much into it XD

**Anamaria275** – Your wish is my command.

**Guest 3 **– Here you go friend ;)


	6. The Girl Who Ran, And The Boy Who Chased

**Year Three**

_The Girl Who Ran, And The Boy Who Chased_

She was hands down, deliberately, _AVOIDING_ him at all costs.

At least that's what the scarred brow boy figured. He had no solid proof, but judging by her actions the past week, she was definitely being more than fleeting with him.

Save for the few hours they had to spend together in the morning due to their forced partnership, Nakiri Erina made sure to make as little contact with Yukihira Sõma as possible.

Why? Well, the little princess reasoned she could not trust herself anymore. He was, just like she had predicted during their first year training camp, _bad for her heart._ As the days had gone by since her internal acknowledgement of Sõma, this had, in turn, a parallel effect with the princess communicating less and less with him.

In fact, it was at the point where she was now even letting him take complete control of their dishes and even allowing him to add whatever he wanted for the sake of not speaking to him.

She was aiming for as little interaction as possible, even if it meant sacrificing her power position in their partnership.

Sõma had at first welcomed the change. He figured Erina had finally come around and actually started to like his ideas. However, he had his suspicions since she was being _overly_ cooperative so abruptly. By the end of the week, Sõma realized the error of his ways and came to the understanding that Erina was definitely not approving of anything he was doing. In actuality, he concluded she was silently rejecting him, which was the complete opposite of how she normally behaved. The typical Erina had no problems voicing her rejection, which was the first clue that created his suspicions in the first place.

It was starting to feel to the boy like he had no partner at all. She hadn't even spoken to him for the past few days and now she was barely even physically responding whenever he said anything. She would just give him a nod or wave him off. He even tried his silly face tactic that worked the last time she was acting this way. He was more than a hundred percent certain it would work.

However all he got out of her this time was a shrug and a roll of the eyes.

He really had no idea what went on in that brain of hers. Honestly, he had not a single clue. He swore however, it's the same issues every time. She either talks to him or she doesn't. She just couldn't seem to settle on picking one. And just when he thought they're on a good note, she flips the switch and goes back into her broody self. Except this time she throws it for a complete loop, and instead of being in broody mode, he get's this imitation of an Erina, who's alive but at the same time emotionally dead.

He just couldn't wrap his head around it. Did she really hate him that much?

He started to think that it might just be a female thing, remembering one time his father jokingly told him girls get crazy during high school. However, Megumi, Ikumi, and Ryõko have all stayed the same. And even Alice and Hisako were still treating him like they always do. So why must Erina act like this? Clearly it's not a female thing.

_It's an ERINA thing._

The boy sighed. He decided after all his remaining classes were done, he would find the temperamental princess and fix this. He had no idea what he did wrong like usual, but he knew it was definitely related to him somehow. He could feel it.

He wasn't one to normally stress about situations like these, but being in an awkward situation with someone and not knowing why just left him a bit uneasy. Especially when you had to work with said partner every morning.

* * *

Making his way down the halls, backpack slung over one shoulder and hands in his pockets, Yukihira Sõma headed towards where he believed to be Erina's last class.

He had remembered her saying one time to Hisako during their morning seminar to meet her in building E after all their classes so they could head home together. Well, he was definitely in building E. So all he had to do now was find which classroom she was in. Thankful that his professor let him out a bit early, Sõma went from door to door, peeking through the glass entries to see if he could spot a figure with a yellow head, fierce sideburns, and the most hypnotizing pair of orchid eyes he could find. Honestly there was no girl like her, not a single girl he could think of even came close to even looking like her. She should be easy to find right?

_Wrong!_

Sõma had patrolled the building what he thought to be over ten times already. He could have sworn he checked every class, nook, and cranny of that building. There were no signs of her.

To build upon his frustration, the hustle and bustle of students of all ages and sizes were now in the mix of things, having just been let out of class. The teen then placed a hand on his face and let out a long sigh.

"Ughhh, Nakiri why must you be such a pain?" he said to himself. As if the gods had heard his pleas, Sõma then saw a flash of blonde hair swish through the crowd. Getting a better look, he was more than sure now it was Erina.

Honey blonde hair? Check.

Orchid colored eyes? Check.

Pointy sideburns and an elitist posture? Check and check.

Deadly aura surrounding her that said "back off or die…" Check three times.

Smirking, he began making his way over to her.

_No one could wear a scowl like her… No one._

Erina had just finished her last class and grumpily left the confines of it all. She was tired, and a bit more moody than she should be. Not necessarily because of class, in fact the seminar was perfectly fine. A bit boring since she practically knew everything the professor was saying, but none-the-less A-O.K.

What was irritating her however, was the fact that since class was always a bit remedial for her, she often found herself daydreaming. And today, she caught herself doing it far too many times.

Normally that wouldn't be a problem. For average students yes, she would advise for them to pay attention. But for someone of her intelligence, one could afford to be more lax.

The problem conversely, lied not with the daydreaming itself, but the subject of the daydreams. In every single one of those fantasies, that damned red-haired-scarred-face-boy was the center of attention. And it was getting worse with every passing one. By the fifth incident today, Erina was left weak and blushing furiously at how real it seemed. The vividness of her hallucinations were on par to that of the imagery she gets whenever she tasted a dish. This in turn, caused Erina to at one point resort to cursing her imagination.

The little princess was starting to gravely realize her plan of avoiding him to ease those unknown feelings in her chest was having an adverse affect in her mind.

The more she avoided him, the more she fantasized of him….

Snapping out of her musings, Erina looked up to see the subject of her fantasy, and unequivocal torment, quickly approaching her. She stopped moving, completely frozen, almost not believing it to be true. In fact, it took her a few seconds to realize this wasn't one of her gaudy hallucinations. This was real, and it was definitely happening. He was surely, but slowly, making his way towards her.

"_Why is he here!"_ Erina internally groaned. _"And why is he heading straight for me!"_

She had to think fast…

Like a rabbit in the midst of July, having spotted a hungry hawk on the prowl, natural instincts of fight-or-flight overcame her and Erina took off in the opposite direction running for her life.

She had no idea what made her come up with this plan. Hell, it was completely out of character and definitely not thought through well enough because now it was plainly obvious she was trying to avoid him. If he would of approached her and asked her about it, she could have denied everything and said he's overthinking things. She could of even brushed it off and made up some lie like that's how their relationship always has been… which is sort of, partially, maybe… slightly true?

But damn her legs for thinking faster than her head! And now… that plan of just brushing it aside was completely out the window. With her jetting off like this, which she immediately regretted, this blatantly signaled something was up.

WHATEVER!

_'So what if he knew,'_ she thought! These were her instincts kicking in, which had to mean she was in danger.

_Danger of falling in love?_

She was set on avoiding him. And that's that! Morning classes were already hard enough trying to control her beating heart and flux of emotions.

She couldn't wait for when those painstakingly long classes came to a close. It aggrieved her to no end to even be in the same room as him. Her chest hurt every time he tried to start up a conversation and she would ignore him, when in truth she really did want to speak back to him; yell at him, and even participate in their headache-inducing banter, which undeniably she had grown fond of. It ached when those brazen orbs of his looked at her; pleading for some sort of communication and she would emotionlessly turn away.

It made her feel empty when he shared his smile and stupid grin with Megumi but would only look at her with a lost expression on his features.

_It pained… _

_It… _

_It just did. _

And she could do nothing about it. She could not stop that soreness, that hollow feeling she got every time she forced him further away.

But there was no turning back! Her sacrifices up till now were not going to be put in vain. She was set on distancing herself from him, and she was going through with it! She was a woman who always prided herself on what she said. And even if it's going to take everything out of her, she was going to give it her all to make it happen.

Rounding the nearest corner as fast as she could, Erina sprinted towards the exit sign just a few meters ahead of her. The hallway was clear and there was no one in her way, no one she had to push or fight though. She smiled, she was in luck. And she was so close…

She felt like a marathon runner, having ran hours and hours, and now the finish line was just right in front of her. Her prize, her goal, it was there, just a bit further… just a few more strides, a few more steps… and she would be gone.

Unfortunately, she never made it to the finish line…

Instead of breaking through the ribbons like a winner having marked her victory, Erina was tackled to the ground in defeat like some football player merely inches away from making a game-winning-touchdown.

She was defeated… The rabbit was caught… there would be no finish line celebrations for her.

Yukihira Sõma, now above her, turned Erina over so she could face him.

_'So he could probably bask in his victory, and enjoy her defeat'_ she assumed.

He was panting heavily, much like herself, completely out of breath. Placing both of his hands on either side of her, he pinned her down below him, using his body to keep her trapped.

Erina blushed at their current predicament; more than thankful the hallway was empty so no one could see them in such embarrassing positions. This was starting to play out like one of those shōjo manga's she read from time to time.

She couldn't control the rapid pants that escaped her. That was the fastest she had ever ran in her life. Clutching her stomach, she continued to gasp for air.

"You're… You're pretty…" Sõma began, finding it hard to speak. It took everything to gain on her. For someone so sheltered, he was amazed she was so fast.

Erina's blush intensified, while continuing to breathe heavily below him. Was he calling her pretty? What in the world is going on? And why was she feeling some sort of delight in his stupid compliment. Her mind was racing… This is definitely like one of her romance books she read.

Any minute now he was going to say something that would change their relationship forever!

"Fast… You're pretty fast, Nakiri…" Sõma finally managed to get out. Wow that was a struggle to say. He couldn't remember the last time he was so out of breath like this. His stomach hurt every time he inhaled and exhaled let alone speak.

Yes, it was definitely the spark for change all right. She forgot. This was real life. This wasn't one of her books… he wasn't going to say what she thought he was going to. Instead, he was going to play these stupid games.

Erina glared at him. _"This man…" _Her former delight in what she thought was a compliment now turning to complete disdain.

Her emotions were again being toyed with.

_She was TIRED of being played with! _

Even if it wasn't his fault, and everything he had done so far has been purely innocent, she was going to blame him. She was going to take out all her frustrations on him, all that built up stress. She needed someone to vent on.

And look here, she had a volunteer. He's practically asking for it, scratch that… he was begging for it! He even went as far as to tackle her when she's going in and out of her way to avoid him. This obnoxious, over-confident, emotion-playing womanizer! Where she got the womanizer part… she had no idea. It just felt right. Probably from one of those videos her and Alice watched about teen drama.

He must love seeing her bad side.

"Yukihira Sõma!" Erina yelled below him, still huffing and puffing, much like the boy still not recovered. "You… YOU JERK!"

**SLAP.**

She did it. She slapped him so hard across the face that it echoed loudly throughout the empty corridor.

And just like she had thought, it felt REALLY good.

He didn't deserve it. Shoot, when was Sõma ever on the deserving end for one of her tirades. But god damn…

It felt amazing to hit him. Not because she was a violent person or anything… but everything, literally all of her anxiety and trauma went from her… completely gone. It was like all of it went to her hand, and then got expunged onto his face! And all it took was a little moment of madness, and a bit of physical contact.

Sõma on the other hand just looked at her, his face scarily calm. In fact, Erina soon got over the delirious feeling she was having after slapping him and became increasingly worried he wasn't reacting at all. She would of thought any normal person would have screamed, or shouted, or something!

"Yu-Yukihira-kun?"

He didn't even move. His eyes pierced hers in a look she couldn't put a name on. He just remained above her, as if her slap had frozen him in time. Erina swallowed hard.

"S-Sõma-kun! Say something!" She was starting to get scared.

And then, just like that he laughed.

Could you believe it? This man had the audacity to laugh, right after she slapped him.

She looked at him in disbelief and he gave her one of his typical grins.

"See how annoying it is? When someone refuses to speak and is giving you the cold shoulder?"

Erina blushed and looked away guiltily. Even now he was playing with her emotions… How he could remain so aloof about anything, she had no idea. She really was the only one getting worked up about everything. God, she hated him for that. And she guessed she did deserve that bit of teasing. After ignoring him for a full week, of course he'd want some form of retribution.

Sõma let out a sigh, even though outwards he looked very calm and composed, internally he wondered why must he go through all this just to get her to even "speak" to him.

Getting up off her, he then reached down giving her a helping hand up. When Erina was now comfortably on both feet she assumed he would let go of her hand. However Sõma still held on tightly. His grip was like always… soft yet strong and firm; her face was starting to heat up again just thinking about it.

She tried tugging her hand away but he wasn't letting go. Giving him a slight questioning look, Sõma just shrugged.

"Just in case you decide on running away again…"

Erina looked down mortified and flushed. She was being treated like a child.

"S-Sorry…" she mumbled. "I won't run, I… I promise."

Sõma nodded, and released her hand. Erina patted down her shirt and skirt knocking away any lingering dust that might have stuck on from the floor.

"So…" Sõma began realizing it was starting to get awkward. He was sure what he was about to ask wasn't going to make the situation any better though. "Why have you been avoiding me?"

Since getting up Erina couldn't meet his gaze, and even now knowing she owed him an explanation still couldn't face him. She started to nervously twiddle her fingers trying to think up of something.

"I-I don't know…"

Sõma raised a slightly frustrated brow. He wasn't mad or anything, but just a bit annoyed that she can just ignore him for a week and feel like she didn't have to justify it in any way.

Erina stole a peek at Sõma, and just like she had thought he didn't look too pleased with that answer.

"Erina, can you at least tell me what I'm doing wrong? I don't want to have to tackle you every time I want you to start talking to me again… I mean I can, but I don't want to," he jokingly teased at the end to try and lighten the weight of their conversation.

Sõma's teasing however only increased Erina's embarrassment. She was becoming more and more flustered by the minute. She owed him an answer…

_Maybe this had gone on long enough? This tension, she needed it to end._

She started to think that she should tell him. She recalled from the last manga she read, once the confession happened, everything became normal. They boy and the girl became a couple and they were the two happiest people on the planet. Would this play out the same way as that manga? She didn't want much; all she wanted was for her life to get back to being normal. All the emotional stress, she wanted it gone. Erina swallowed hard and for the first time since standing again looked into Sõma's eyes.

She didn't care for the couple part, or being happy or any silly nonsense like that. She just had to get it out of her chest. It was killing her slowly just to keep it in.

_It was now or never…_

"Y-Yukihira-kun… I… I don't really understand why I've been doing the things I've done lately…"

Erina's face was practically burning as she started. Her stomach was in knots. She had never been so uncertain in her life. However she kept strong and decided she had to tell him. It was getting in the way of her daily routine way too much.

Sõma watched her intently. He was hypnotized by the swirling shades of pink in her eyes. They held so many emotions; courage, confusion, even glimpses of fear. He couldn't look away even if he wanted to. His cheeks started to tint a bit, as thoughts of how gorgeous they were danced in his head. He hadn't really thought much about it before, but Erina definitely did have a pair of the most beautiful eyes he had ever seen.

Erina continued, her voice and probably her entire being right now, as fragile as ever.

"I think… maybe… just a slight bit… I… I…."

Sõma's breath caught as he waited, completely enamored with her.

"Like you?"

It came out more like a question than a statement. And it was hardly a confession at all considering the breaks in her sentences. But Erina was proud nonetheless. That took everything inside of her just to say it. Mortified didn't even begin to explain the magnitude of how she felt.

But after saying those few words, she felt so much release. Even more than from the slap she gave him a few moments ago.

Sõma raised a brow at Erina's confession. He was blushing slightly and his heart was beating faster than it normally did. The only time he could recall getting feelings like this was when he cooked. However, he remained pretty much normal, unlike the stress-relieved Erina.

He was glad Erina liked him, but hadn't they been come to that understanding? The boy was a bit confused.

"I know," said Sõma, giving her a small smile. "Don't worry, I like you too. I thought we've established that around the time of the Moon Banquet Festival. You even taste-tested my dish to try and help me beat Kuga-senpai." The boy then chuckled, completely unaware this was definitely NOT the 'like' Erina was talking about.

"Well I'm glad you came to the realization you liked me, but you shouldn't have been avoiding me because of that." Sõma then put a hand on his chin. "Hmm… wow, imagine if all girls were like you. Then I'd have to go through this with Megumi, Ryõko, Yuki, Ikumi…"

Sõma went on listing all the girls in his life and Erina could feel her blood boil.

"_THIS IDIOT! How dense could he be?"_

Erina could no longer take it. This had to be a joke! He was messing with her. That just had to be it. Beyond frustrated, her earlier anger was now returning. It was already embarrassing enough for her to give a confession, something she had ZERO experience doing. Like hell, she didn't even know if she truly liked him or not. But at least she was trying. This idiot on the other hand just keeps on ignoring everything between them. She didn't have time for this. It was too much. If this was what being a normal girl meant, she wanted no part of it.

"Get away from me…" Erina turned around and headed towards the exit.

"Huh? Naki-"

"Shut up! I don't want to hear another word from you!"

Erina had it with him. She could take no more of this foolishness. Instead of solving her issues, she felt like she had dug up more.

Sõma stood there and watched Erina leave. He was confused. Was this going to be a constant thing with them? Her angry and him lost? It just didn't make any sense.

'_She said she liked me, ok… but that's nothing new,'_ Sõma thought. He was trying to decipher exactly what Erina meant. _'The only other way to like someone is-'_

Sõma stopped. It could only be that reason. It had to be. It explained everything. In fact it did more than explain, it practically sung to him.

"She likes me?" He repeated to no one in particular.

_'So what she did was a confession?' _he realized.

No one had ever confessed to him before. And he'd been around women of all ages and sizes all the time, and there was never one that did not like him… but he never would of thought, someone actually, like literally, liked him like that. Especially that person to be Nakiri Erina.

He never thought about love. It was just something that he saw but never took an interest to. But right now his heart was aching at the realization of how he treated Erina's confession.

Sõma clenched his fists. The real task now was to come to a decision. Did he like her? And if he did, he needed to make amends now!

He had always found her interesting, and he loved the conversations he had with her; they were like no other. He was also, without say, impressed by her ability to cook, her skills rivaling his own. Her ability as a chef was indescribable, for she had no limit. And from a physical standpoint she was a cute girl, he had to admit. His favorite feature of her was those obnoxiously pointy sideburns that he found quite adorable. He had no idea when he started to like them but he always wondered how she kept them so pointy. He sometimes had to urge to tug on them, wondering just how mad she would get if he did. The thought made him smile a bit stupidly.

So this meant he liked her right?

_He had no idea…_

But hearing Erina say those words, and knowing he was hurting her stirred up something in him. Also, watching her leave with that indignant look in her eyes, specifically directed at him, was starting to make him angry he did not act upon her feelings.

Heading straight for the exit, Sõma ran out the building on the trail for the blonde. He had to make up for his cluelessness.

Looking around however, he saw nothing. She was nowhere to be found. He figured she must have had a car waiting for her outside.

The red haired boy clenched his teeth. Turning around, he ran to the rack where he had left his bike. Hopping on it, he rode at full speed to where he assumed Erina was, her mansion. He couldn't stop the feelings in his chest. He was determined to see her.

Bypassing the guards, which had seen the boy so many times over the past three years, without question they let him in.

Arriving at the front of her house, Yukihira Sõma parked his bike and saw the door was left open.

He shook his head.

'_Rich people; They think they can just leave doors open because they have guards and such,_' Sõma thought rather amusingly.

Upon entering he looked up at the large staircase in front of him and around the building in general. He had been in the mansion a few times over the course of his time at Tõtsuki, but he had never actually been to Nakiri's room before; and judging by the grandness of this building, it might take some time to find her.

Sõma sighed. He swore this girl was just trouble…

* * *

Erina slammed her face in her pillow and let out a scream. She was completely angry and embarrassed. She should have expected him to react that way. Ever since she had met him, she knew he had a squid for a brain. Why would she have assumed it would be any different now?

Hell, it was starting to make sense why Sõma and Megumi weren't a couple by this point. He probably never realized her poor feelings. Even she could see it and she didn't really even hang around them all that much! And now she was in the same _damn_ boat as the pigtailed girl.

Facing up now from her pillow, Erina looked at her ceiling breathing mighty heavily. God when she told herself she wanted to be like all the other girls her age, she didn't mean it this way. She could do without the drama.

Hearing a knock on her door Erina snapped out of her musings and perked up quite a bit.

'_Hisako!' she mentally screamed. _God she loved her aide. She swore, Hisako was always there for her. How someone could be so dependable she had no idea. She couldn't wait to vent to her poor secretary. She would tell her everything. She needed to tell someone. She didn't care anymore.

Why she was keeping her feelings a secret from her closest friend, she had no idea. She was going to spill it all! Hisako would know what to do, she _always_ knew what to do.

Rushing to the door, she opened it and blindly grabbed the person knocking and yanked them inside, dragging them onto her bed.

"Hisa-"

Her heart stopped and her voice caught.

This hand, she knew this hand! The texture… hard and sturdy yet soft at the same time. How something could be so contradicting yet completely accurate was beyond her. This hand… it held the experience of chef who's been in the kitchen since the age of three.

This was the hand not of her long time and lovable friend Hisako, but…

Forcefully turning her head now, Erina was in complete shock that Yukihira Sõma was in her room. Hell, he was on HER DAMN BED! And she brought him there! She couldn't even find it in herself to scream. Her voice was completely lost. That's how shocked she was. She just continued to look at him in disbelief; as if there was no way he's possibly here, with her, at this moment.

Sõma just grinned at her bewildered look.

"You know Nakiri, you have a bad habit of not really making up your mind. After telling me to get away a little while back, it's kind of strange that you're pulling me in…" he teased.

Erina opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out. She was flabbergasted to say the least. What her mouth could not say, her chest answered for her. The little princess' heart was now beating like a drum; she was sure he could hear the music it was playing.

Yukihira Sõma was in her room, and ON HER BED! Did she forget to mention that? And they were alone!

TOGETHER!

Erina's mind quickly went in search mode, trying to pull up as much information as possible to deal with the current situation.

She had read some manga's that got to scenes like this but it they were always too much for her. She would stop immediately, way too flustered to even read on. She didn't have the courage to. She was interested but it would always make her innocent mind overload. And now she was paying the price. She had no idea what to do in this situation.

Sõma instead did not wait for her to say anything. He pushed her down on her bed and placed both hands on each side of her, effectively pinning her below him. It was funny, because this felt like déjà vu. It was as if today's earlier incident foreshadowed their predicament now.

Erina looked at him, a blush furiously playing on her features. His eyes looked so determined, so intense, she couldn't even look away. He was by far the most captivating man she had ever met. She had come to terms with that... he most definitely was.

"This feels... familiar..." she had no idea why she said that. She just felt like it, trying to make small talk. Sõma however didn't respond. He just kept looking at her, his eyes showing much internal deliberation. What he was deciding over she had no clue. Then as if coming to his course of action, he gave her a wicked smile that sent shivers down Erina's spine.

The blonde opened her mouth to speak again but before she could even begin to say anything, Sõma leaned down and kissed her passionately. Nothing too forceful for the teen, but it was a potent enough kiss that that forced both their eyes closed and kept them together for a few seconds.

Erina was at a loss. What in the world was happening? Wasn't he confused about what she said to him? Was he not the dense boy that she had just spoken to maybe an hour ago? What happened over that time? All her questions soon started to fade as Erina continued to be devoured by Sõma's kiss. She couldn't even think anymore. His kiss was turning her to mush.

Pulling away, Sõma looked down at her, grinning wildly. Below him, Erina was panting heavily, unable to control her irregular breathing. She had this dreamy look in her eyes and her typical pout that was becoming more and more absurdly adorable to Sõma.

"My… My first kiss…" was all Erina could get out. That's literally the only thing that she could come up with right now. She didn't have the capacity to think of anything else to say. She looked up at Sõma, her heart and assumingly her face full of heat.

This man above her, her strongest rival and now _crush?_ He had kissed her… Such boldness, the audacity of this man! Not that she didn't like it... She loved it! But it just caught her by surprise. He dared to defile her without her consent! She would have slapped him again today if that kiss didn't leave her so weak. It sucked all the energy out of her.

Sõma's smirk widened more, if that was even humanely possible, and leaned back in and kissed her again. When parting this time he licked his lips, much like the girl unwillingly below him.

She tasted amazing. And judging by her reaction, she felt the same.

Those plump and pouty lips of hers, he could not get enough of them. He wanted to kiss them more.

"My… seco-"

And so he did.

"Thir-"

And again…

"Fo-"

And again.

"Yuki-"

In fact, Sõma kept on kissing her until Erina couldn't even speak. The only sound coming from her now was the smashing of their lips and the occasional moan she let out. She was starting to lose count. Every time she had opened her mouth, he just went back down and kissed her. At one point he just kept on kissing her without even giving her a chance to even part her lips. He would just lean in, kiss her, separate, and kiss her again.

Rinse and repeat. He was kissing her senseless.

Erina dug her hands into the back of Sõma's hair, not even realizing when she had unconsciously wrapped her arms around his neck. Every time he kissed her, she would put pressure on the back of his head, forcefully deepening the kiss.

She hated that this man had so much power over her. He had this uncanny ability of making all reason go flying out the window. Every time he was around her, she just acted on pure feeling. Erina at some point during their exchanges just kept her eyes closed, not bothering to even open them up anymore. She was accepting his barrage of kisses, in complete bliss.

She only opened them when she was sure his attack had finally stopped.

Having finished leaving Erina speechless, and coincidentally now breathless, Sõma leaned up again and looked down at his masterpiece; a sweaty, red faced, dreamy looking, panting blonde. Her long hair was sprawled out all directions, and her eyes fierce, yet held a far-out look, completely absentminded about the world around her. If Sõma could have painted her at this moment, she would have been a picture that could have rivaled the Mona Lisa in both beauty and fame.

"How many was that?" He panted. His eyes held such amusement. He found it funny she actually tried to keep count of how many times he had taken her lips.

"I… I don't know," Erina gasped below him. She had not the strength in her to say much more. She didn't even know how she even had the will to answer him. All she knew was that he had stolen her first and assumedly the following hundred kisses after that.

This man literally could do whatever he wanted with her. It scared her a bit to even think about it. However she couldn't deny the thrill it sent throughout her body.

At this moment there was so much heat within her. It was as if she was on fire.

Sõma seemed pleased with that answer. Getting up off her and off the large bed, the red haired boy made his way to the door.

That was also his first time kissing someone as well, and it felt amazing. He never knew the feeling of another person's lips clashing against his own would feel so great.

And then there was the taste. It was absolutely heavenly. That was the only thing he could think of to describe it. He wondered if he would be able to include this type of taste in a dish?

He turned and looked back at the exhausted teen. She looked so incredibly hot; sprawled out on her bed, hair disheveled, clothes rumbled. His mind was practically screaming for him to go back and ravish her lips again. However he had to maintain control of himself. Running his hands through his hair, reminiscing the feeling of how she was gripping him as they kissed, Sõma was trying to burn this sensation into his mind. This amazing passion, could he really transition it to a dish? He then got an idea.

"Tomorrow..." He started, trying to think of how he was going to say this. Erina raised her head from her bed and looked at him, having come out of her trance by the sound of his voice. "I'm going to make you a dish. It's time we settled things. If I get you to say "it's good" with that mouth of yours, I'll kiss you unconscious."

Erina blushed furiously and squeezed the sheets below her in embarrassment.

"Y-You… You brute."

Sõma however didn't wait for Erina's reply. He had already closed the door and was on his way out, a very satisfied look on his face. Passing Hisako along the way, he gave her a playful wink after receiving a shocked, but questioning look.

The pinkette blushed furiously, her mind coming up with all kinds of scenarios as to why Yukhira Sõma was leaving her Erina-sama's room.

_Erina was going to have a lot of explaining to do that night._

* * *

**Edit: 6.3 11:13AM, 9/11/15**

My dude Kusabi! Glad to have you back editing my work hehe. Was wondering where you disappeared off to lol. As always, thank you!

**Edit: 6.2 4:11PM, 9/9/15**

Hey guys and gals! **I posted a poll on my profile.** It's about the lemon question one of my reviewers asked me. Go to my profile and choose an answer. I hope its up there... I never really did a poll before. Pick what you guys think and depending on the results I'll do what I can ;)

**Authors Note: **I'm really glad I split up the chapter because that would have just been too much if it was added to the last one! And the time I had to perfect the scenes I wanted really helped because they are completely different from how I initially had them written lol. Also both chapters are subjectively different so I'm really glad I did that. I was at first reconsidering it but now I'm happy. They both express different ideas, and even though it was a bit mean to leave you guys hanging, I couldn't merge the chapters. Especially when this second half was not all that edited and perfected to my liking. I wouldn't forgive myself if I posted it in its past state. I'm very anal about things like that. If I don't like how a chapter is written I won't post it until everything is 100% to my liking; even at the cost of having people wait…

**OMG that latest chapter of Shokugeki!** The way Erina looked at Sõma. The way it was built up for him to come in, and give her some hope. An escape? I swear, my heart melted. Her look, and Sõma's typical grinning face; Ahh… I couldn't have pictured that scene any better. Erina's timidness on page 4, when her father walked by… OMG. I love this girl. We've waited so long for this Sorina fans! One hundred and then some in, and we're finally starting to see some development. YES!

Now onto the reviews, my favorite part hehe. I swear; there is never a short amount of them. You guys… you really make me feel special with some of your comments. Honestly, I feel like the best writer in the world when I read some of the things you say. It just makes me feel really, really, special. I quote my version of Erina when I say, "with everything I am… thank you."

**CodeChase – **Haha, yeah Sõma and Megumi will remain close. No matter what, their bond is unbreakable. And Ikumi and Takumi have indeed tried his dish. At least some point in the years that have past in my story. ;)

**TeddyHugs** – Hey there bestie! Yeh Eri can get quiet jealous lol. At least I would think so. Hmm… I don't think Erina would let anything happen to that photo lmao. It's now a new treasure for her, much like the one with her and Jou.

**Agnew** – Haha, sorry. I tend to take a while when writing. It takes me while since I'm so picky on how I write things. Even when finishing a chapter, I always wait a day before posting because I like to re-read.

**XD** – Man a real novel! Wow, jeez I'm not that good haha. A real story… those guys are amazing. I'm just a humble writer that enjoys writing about established characters. I don't think I'd be able to create amazing characters like Erina and Sõma.

**Ridwan-Sama** – I'm glad to be back friend. I'm the same way! I love reading other fics as well! Whenever a fic I favorite gets updated, I stop all that I do and read LMAO.

**Willywid** – Thank you ;)

**Alzeno - **:)

**Sorina** – Thanks. I like your name hehe. And I think you will be very happy since I just updated. Sorry about the wait my friend. Honestly, I was on a trip for Labor Day in the woods. I had no Internet connection so I couldn't post my story. Which was pretty good since it gave me time to look over the chapter. But I hope you like it! And you should make an account instead of being a guest ;) You will get updates on when I update chaps and such through email hehe.

**Demon Damian** – Good lord man. I swear you must make the opposite sex wet when you speak to them because that was hot lol. And I definitely don't want you to die so here! Read now!

**Abhishekbssn **– Exactly. That's the way I see it too. Alice may have a rivalry, but above all else, she would never do anything to hurt Erina. I think in truth, they love each other lots.

**Yuu Hoshimura** – Hehe, thanks. I try to keep it so every chapter captures my readers. Quick romances in my opinion leave me unfulfilled.

**Unoo** – Thank you.

**Raydark182** – Hope you enjoy Ray!

**Gokaiger Red** – Hehe. This chapter and the last was actually one chapter. But OMG that would have been overbearing I think lol. And thank you, I feel amazing someone thinks that way. I work really hard on my craft. And I see, yeah, I didn't want to include how Erina comes to find out Sõma is Jou's son in my fic. Mainly because I think that will be a huge moment in the manga. And I don't want to ruin it because I thought of some lame way of finding out lol. And yeah, I think that will be added in the next chapter, or chapter after the next. I'll see.

**Laury Rose:** Thank you very much Rose. I feel Megumi is friend zoned as well. I just think Sõma needs someone to push him, and I don't think Megumi is that person. I do however feel that Megumi would be better at comforting Sõma if something did arise. Erina would probably just look at him like, "get over it." Lol.

**Guest** **1 **– Thank you!

**Fujitora – **Lol. Erina does overreact all the time. I think that's why I like her so much.

**Teambackpack** – Yes there should be some soon. ;)

**Blond Dude 42** – If I do have grammar issues please let me know! I don't take criticism personally. I like when people let me know when I wrote something wrong. It makes me a better writer and better for the next person who reads my story because I go back and edit chapters. I hope your soul feels good after this chapter. Much fluff.

**Bar-Ar-Ra23 **– Thank you. That was my goal when writing this. And I understand. I have a problem with updating quickly. I can be quite lazy when I want lol.

**LuffyTheYonkou** – Wow? One of the best ever… if that actually happens, I would be overjoyed. And holy crap dude, you're like me. I 've been reading on this site for years. Thank you! I'm flattered you think so highly of me; really makes me feel special. I'm glad people of all ages can find my story entertaining. Thank you!

**Zivyx **– lol. She tried her hardest. Sõma just wont let her.

**Alt** – Here you go.

**Guest 2** – Sõma Erina Lemons huh? I've actually thought of that. Don't have much experience in writing lemons but I'm quite interested in writing my own believe it or not. If a lot more people ask for it, then I can make a quick one shot of a Sõma Erina lemon and see how I do. If it goes well, I can write more. But first we'll see if people want it or not.

**The-3Charles2-Hunter** – Yes! The current Arc! Bless our souls!

**ClippedNinja** – Yes! Sõma is coming to save her. Ahh, the feels. And your welcome. I write for people like you. Seeing comments like these make me want to write more.

**DarkPirateKing69** – A new reader I see? I'm glad you've enjoyed my story! Really, I'm happy when new readers come along and find my piece. It makes me happy knowing even the new readers still find this story relative and up-to-date.


	7. Final

Year Three

Final

Staring out the window, Nakiri Erina let out a sigh as she waited for her last class to come to a close. She noticed the sunlight slowly start to fade as dusk soon overtook its arch-nemesis. The day was passing by much too quickly for her liking, for it would soon be after hours, and that meant she would have to confront him…

_That man… and his cooking. _

Her heartbeat started to increase once again, with just the thought of him.

Looking back down at her notebook, she continued listing her feelings hoping to not drift off again. She was soon starting to realize that was another side effect of the scarred face boy, he drew too much of her attention.

Now where was she, ah yes, she was making a pro's and con's table for her said dilemma.

Yukihira Sõma

Pros: Creative, Determined, Hard Worker…

Cons: **Forever A ****Plebeian**, Arrogant, Stupid, Weird Cooking Habits, **Womanizer**, Dense…

To be honest, she had not even paid a single piece of attention to anything at all today since first period. He had reminded her then, that he was going to make her confess his cooking was good. Not like she needed reminding, she had thought about it all night! But then he even went a step further and even invited everyone else in the class as well!

Erina grit her teeth. She already hated the idea of acknowledging his cooking, much to her heart's dismay, but to now do it while everyone else was present. She couldn't even fathom the idea.

She shook her head, and refocused back on her chart. Her life as she knew it was completely dependent on it. It was obviously a matter of life and death. Even though her heart wanted one thing, her brain could not help but categorize this man. He was a threat to her very existence and beliefs.

She continued to list more of his traits, as her mind then started to trail off again to what he had said the night before. She had replayed his words like a favorite song over and over again. It was practically the only thing on her mind all day.

_"Tomorrow... I'm going to make you a dish. It's time we settled things. If I get you to say "it's good" with that mouth of yours, I'll kiss you unconscious."_

Erina then slammed her face on her notebook completely embarrassed. Her memory of it was so vivid; it caused her to blush furiously. Some of the students looked around at her suspiciously but didn't dare to question _the _Nakiri Erina.

Erina sat there with her face pressed against her notebook, in deep thought. How in the world could he even say that with a straight face! Just thinking about it was causing her much embarrassment.

And then to go as far as to say he would kiss her unconscious!

Her! _THE_ Nakiri Erina! God's Tongue and future ruler of the cooking world! HE would kiss _HER _unconscious? She pictured his cocky grin and didn't feign from rolling her eyes. She would show him.

He caught her off guard last night! That was the only reason he was able to leave her like a lovesick schoolgirl when Hisako came in… God all the explaining she had to do... And then she had to do it again when Alice came over! Which made it even worse! To her surprise though, both of them took it quite calmly and she was the only one left truly flustered.

Though when she got to explain all the racy details of their kissing… she was completely mortified. And Alice kept wanting her to be so specific, truly enamored with their kissing. She wanted to know every detail, all the way from the build up and their argument in the hallway, to the hundreds of kisses he put on her. The only thing that actually redeemed all of her embarrassing confession was the fact that Alice kept whining how she wanted to kiss a boy before Erina. The snow-white princess then promptly ran off to find Ryõ. It was obvious to Erina and Hisako what the little princess had schemed.

Well… at least that was another thing she had over her cousin. Their rivalry continued to weigh in her favor. Erina sighed as her thoughts then went back to the red haired boy.

What Sõma did to her… that man! She glared at no one in particular, though a certain student thought she was glaring at him and ran out of the room in pure terror.

The bell rang at around the same time and everyone paid the fleeting student no mind, assuming he was just in a rush to get out of class.

Lifting her face now off her book, Erina had to stifle a scream as she realized while during her daydream and rampant thoughts, she had subconsciously been filling out only good things about the boy now.

Roguish, charming, confident, good kisser, and many more things she wish not mention were now under the "Pros" column.

She practically died inside as she read each and every single one.

Taking her pen, she scratched out the entire positive column.

There was NOTHING good about that man!

God! He was just too much for her…

And to make matters worse, weirdly enough their relationship had not changed even in the slightest. Well from his perspective at least. He still treated her the same, poking fun and even teasing her like he always did in class today. Erina on the other hand over thought everything he was doing. She couldn't even sleep since he kissed her last night. She was completely restless; her mind had raced with thoughts as to what would happen when they met up in class earlier today.

It was a bit awkward at first, in truth only for her as Sõma acted like nothing happened. But now as it dawned on her the day was ending, it meant it was getting closer to that time where she would have to acknowledge his cooking.

She had no idea why it was so hard for her. She had already kind of confessed to him that she liked him. Like really, that should be the most demoralizing and humiliating thing ever! But for some reason, the idea of her telling him his cooking was actually enjoyable, and delicious scared her even more.

Maybe it was because this was something she had held on to for so long. For THREE unforgettably long years! She continued to put him down and reject his cooking. Now today, not even one complete semester into their final year, she was going to tell him she had actually liked his cooking?

It was unbelievable. The thought of it actually scared her. Their relationship dynamic was going to change forever after she tells him she approved of his cooking…

_Right?_

This was a secret she held on to for far too long… Erina was starting to panic, as thoughts of avoiding the boy once again rose up in her mind. She felt guilty that she was even thinking such thoughts; after she had just promised him she would stop avoiding him.

Everyone had the classroom already, including the professor, leaving the Tõtsuki princess alone. Erina groaned to herself, unsure of how to proceed…

* * *

It was now officially night, and the Polar Stars dormitory was jam-packed with all the third years. Everyone had taken his or her places in the large dining room, awaiting Yukihira Sõma's much talked about dish. They gossiped back and forth, chatting about all sorts of random things. From Sõma's dish and what it could be to memories of their first high school year; everyone was having a good time.

Sõma smiled as the voices of his friends filled the Polar Stars. It reminded him of his first year when it was so lively with everyone. He was now in the kitchen, finishing up the last touches on his dish. Any minute now and it would be ready, and he couldn't wait for one particular person to try it.

Making sure everything was to his liking, he covered his creation, and made his way out with it into the dining hall. He tried to refrain his eyes from searching for the blonde, but he couldn't help it. However, he was soon to be disappointed as he saw that she was nowhere to be found.

Hisako and Alice noticed his expectant and warm eyes cast a bit downward, and the goofy grin he always wore shortened to that of barely a smile. Unsurprisingly, Tadokoro Megumi had noticed it as well. To everyone else, nothing was amiss.

Sõma however forced on a large grin and greeted everyone. He told them thanks for all coming and cracked some stupid joke that caused the group to laugh and snicker. He put on that nothing was wrong, and revealed his dish to his fellow Tõtsuki compatriots.

Everyone was completely blown away to say the least! Their taste buds were shook and there was foodgasm after foodgasm as each of the students took a bite of his new creation.

There were absolutely no words to describe it. Even Sõma's three main male rivals: Takumi, Akira and Ryõ were all thoroughly impressed.

"Y-Yukihira!" Takumi exclaimed. "How did you do this?"

"Yeah! Explain yourself Yukihira!" Ryõ chimed in. "There's no way your dish can taste this good!"

Sõma smiled wryly. "It's a secret. Don't worry guys, you'll find out one day…" Much like his father, Sõma wished to let the boys find out on their own.

Akira looked at Sõma knowingly. "It seems you've found someone…" was all he said.

Sõma scratched the back of his head a bit nervously and gave a small laugh. Darn that Akira, he was always so insightful. Last night when he made his dish, he realized those years ago why he lost to Akira in the finals. Why Akira's dish stood out among his and Ryõ's, even though they were all relatively amazing dishes. Akira's just had that little bit more, that extra umph! And he now knew where it came from.

"I guess… maybe…" He winked at Akira who surprisingly nodded approvingly and went back to tasting Sõma's dish.

The girls on the other hand were more vocal about their approval of red head's creation.

Ryõko gobbled down her piece and stood up for seconds! The moment she got up, she didn't even have control over her body and toppled over onto the nearby couch. This caused much laughter from those around her.

After taking a single bite, Tadokoro Megumi was left blushing all over. She even hugged herself from how good she was feeling.

"Sõma-kun! This is amazing!" Megumi chirped. "It makes me feel so warm inside!" She then cooed as if some random heat was truly embracing her.

"Yukihira! You sure went all out on this one!" Alice said, giving her approval. She couldn't even remember the last time she tasted a dish with this much impact. Alice then took a pause and looked at him mischievously. "I wonder what was your motivation…"

Much like he did with Akira, Sõma laughed a bit nervously, starting to wonder just how much the white haired teen knew. However he wouldn't let on anything.

"Nothing much, just had a spark is all…"

Alice hummed and continued to eye him while smiling evilly.

Hisako was next to give her approval of his dish. She smiled warmly at Sõma and gave him a knowing glance.

"If she tasted this, I think she would approve Yukihira-kun."

"E-Eh!" Sõma was a bit caught off guard. It was obvious now; Hisako and Alice both knew what transpired the night before.

"Oh don't play coy now Yukihira-kun…" Alice's grin widened. "We all know why you called us all here. You could never beat a woman's intuition!"

Sõma raised a brow and smirked a bit daringly. "Woman's intuition… or did Erina just tell you?" he teased.

"Hey, it's intuition!" Alice smirked back, and they both shared a small laugh.

"Too bad Erina-sama has not shown up yet…" Hisako mumbled.

Tadokoro cast her eyes downward. She knew it… from the moment he stepped in and looked around.

_This was for Erina. _

This dish he made, that he stood up all night to make… this was all for her. She actually even knew it before he walked in just now; she knew it since last night…

When she had randomly gotten up during the late hours to get something to drink, and she found him still in the kitchen…

And when she taste tested it and said it was great, but he responded back saying it wasn't good enough…

_She knew then and there, this was for her. _

Sõma noticed Megumi's change in emotion and tapped her on the head.

"Hey Tadokoro, you ok?"

Megumi jumped and started to fidget around.

"Y-Yes Sõma-kun! I-I'm fine! Nothing wrong here! H-Hold on, got to use the bathroom, b-be right back!"

Megumi shot out of her seat and ran upstairs, obviously not in the direction of the bathroom. Sõma watched her run off and couldn't help but feel guilty. He had no idea why he felt that way, but something in him was making him feel uneasy.

Tadokoro was acting strange and if anything was troubling his best friend, he would find out what. However before he could make his way in pursuit of Megumi, Hisako stopped Sõma and jumped on up.

"I'll go see what's up. You stay here," she said.

"I'm coming to…" Sõma replied.

"N-No!" Hisako said a bit more loudly than she intended. "Y-You stay here. It's a girl thing, I got this. A-And anyways, this is your dinner for everyone right, the host can't leave!"

Before Sõma could even argue against, Hisako ran off after Megumi and Sõma let out a sigh. Maybe he should let Hisako talk to her; maybe it is a girl thing?

Alice bit her lower lip at the recent developments but didn't say anything. She knew exactly what was going on. Poor Megumi, her heart felt out for the navy haired girl. As much as she also wanted to go to Megumi's comfort, she knew she didn't know much about the teen.

_Instead, she decided to fix the other problem…_

"I'll be right back too Yukihira-kun! You stay put ok!" She gave him a wink and ran out the Polar Stars.

Sõma was left there confused as all hell. _'Just what in the world is going on?'_ he thought. Deciding that he should just do as the women say, he made his way to Shun to see how he felt about his dish.

* * *

Hisako made her way to the sounds of silent sobs and sniffling. She had no idea why she was doing this. She barely knew the teen aside from them being in groups together but she couldn't let Sõma come up here and see the sure to be mess Tadokoro probably looked like. She didn't really have much experience comforting someone, but she was going to try her best.

Knocking on the door to announce she was coming in, Hisako opened it up slowly to see Megumi on her bed balled up and silently trying to control herself. The fragile girl then turned to look at Hisako and the sadness held in her big yellow eyes caused instant pain in aide's chest.

Hisako hesitantly made her way over to Megumi, unsure of what to say and took a seat on the edge of the girl's bed. She had no idea where to even start. She already knew what this was about; she wasn't as dense as the red head downstairs, there was no need to explain why someone as joyful and happy-go-lucky as Tadokoro Megumi would be here in her bed with tears rolling down her soft cheeks. Reaching out she went to place a soft hand on the girl's shoulders.

Before Hisako could even make contact, Megumi lunged at the pinkette and embraced her into a tight hug, while shoving her face into the secretary's chest and started bawling uncontrollably.

She cried out muffled incoherent sentences though some of her words Hisako could make out such as "this is not fair…" and "why did he choose her?"

Hisako was at a crossroads. Her Erina-sama would soon learn the taste of love, something she knew her dearest friend was truly interested in, even if she would deny it. But on the other end of the spectrum, this meant heartbreak for the teen before her.

Hisako was caught off guard by Megumi's sudden outreach, but looked down with gentle eyes nonetheless and hugged the tearful girl in return. Placing one of her hands on her back, she rubbed softly while mumbling words of comfort such as "it's going to be ok," and "you'll one day find happiness too."

* * *

Alice's journey to find Erina was a short one. As soon as she stormed out of the Polar Stars, the Nakiri princess was literally sitting outside on a nearby bench contemplating her next actions.

"Erina!" Alice yelled.

The blonde snapped out of her thoughts and looked up, a bit surprised to see her cousin.

"Alice? What are you doing here?"

The white haired teen looked at Erina skeptically.

"Me? What are you doing here! You should be inside already! How could you have him waiting like this! Last night, didn't you say you were going to confront him today?"

Erina bowed her head guiltily. Yeah, sure she said that yesterday… but that was yesterday! That was after all that steamy rush filled action colluded her mind and turned it into mush!

"I-I know what I said…" Erina looked back up at Alice. "I just… I don't know… I'm scared I guess…"

Alice raised a brow and took a seat by her cousin.

"Scared of what?"

"I-I don't know…" Erina mumbled. "Him… me… everything I guess. If I go in there…" she stopped. "I'm just confused. What should I do Alice!"

Her dear cousin smiled a let out a small laugh at Erina's overly dramatic plea. "Erina relax, you don't need my help. You're strong enough as is. Just go in there and face him! You'll know what to say when you see him."

Erina looked down again and played with her fingers. Would she really?

"Also," Alice added. "Be honest. Be honest to him, and more so, to yourself."

Erina looked at her cousin and let out a small groan. She hated to admit it but Alice was right. She just had to go in there and fix this situation.

She was the one making it awkward. She was _ALWAYS _the one making it so. Didn't she just tell him yesterday she would stop avoiding him? Why does she keep doing this to herself? Where did the strong and confident Erina go? Why is it that everything about this man just throws her completely out of her comfort zone? All these questions…

Erina face palmed herself, frustrated with her own actions.

Hearing some footsteps the pair then looked up to see some of their classmates making their way down the hill from the Polar Stars. Apparently the festivities had come to a close.

Taking a better look, Alice noticed something interesting and grinned evilly. Making their way down the hill, Takumi was carrying Ikumi on his back, as the tanned girl was in a complete state of stupor. Alice guessed she must have gotten a bit too drunk after drinking an excessive amount of Ryõko's rice juice. She swore, the red-haired girl's drink was like a staple for all their get-togethers. And now Takumi had to take responsibility.

Ryõ waved over to Alice, noticing her with her cousin and Alice waved back, signaling she saw him.

"Look's like we're done here then…" Erina mumbled, and got up and dusted off her skirt.

"We are," Alice said, pointing to herself and her other fellow classmates. "But you're not! You're going in there whether you like it or not!"

"A-Alice w-wait!" However, Erina's pleas were met with deaf ears. Her cousin grabbed her hand and dragged her past the leaving third years, also letting Ryõ know to wait there, as she would be right back.

Before Alice could ponder on how to get the door open and shove the resisting Erina inside all at the same time, Hisako was conveniently making her way out.

"Ah Erina-sama! Where have been! We were waiting for you!" Hisako asked a bit more upbeat now, from a few moments ago. The sight of her best friend was having an instant effect on fixing her mood.

Erina bowed her head in apology. "Sorry Hisako… it's… complicated…"

Hisako let out a giggle and held the door open for Erina. She figured as such. When were things ever simple when it came to her beloved ojou-sama?

"Get in there!" She ushered and with the help of Alice, the two gave the blonde princess little-to-no chance and shoved her inside.

Hisako and Alice then shut the door immediately and held the knob, already predicting Erina's next actions.

The heir to the Nakiri throne grabbed the handle on the other end and frantically tried to pull open the door, but it was to no avail. She could not beat the strength of the two girls on the other end.

"Alice! Hisako! Please! Let me out now!"

"No!" The two shouted in unison. Hisako and Alice then looked at each other and shared a small laugh. Who would think they'd be on the same beat.

Erina struggled with the knob on the other end for a little while longer and after coming to the conclusion that her aide and cousin were not going to let her out, she gave up.

"I hate you two…" Erina said defeated from behind the door and then made her way inside the building.

"We love you too Erina!" Alice playfully chirped back.

"Sorry Erina-sama! This is for your own good!" was Hisako's reply.

Content that Erina had left and she was not going to try and escape, the two then met up with Ryõ who was waiting patiently for them.

"Hey where's your B.F.F. Akira?" Alice asked.

"He said he was going for a late night walk on his own," Ryõ answered nonchalantly. "And he's not my B.F.F."

Alice raised a brow suspiciously. It kind of made her happy he said that; she was his best friend and it should remain that way, but she decided to press on for reassurance. "Really! Aww come on, you guys definitely look like best friends. And you're so cute together!"

Ryõ placed his hands in his pockets and gave her a bored look.

"We just have a good rivalry, that's all. And we do not look _cute_ together" he said calmly. He then started to make his way down the hill but stopped and turned to Alice. "Me and you however…" He paused, trying to find the right words to say next. However, he just settled on repeating what she said earlier, "look cute together…"

With that said he turned back and continued on his way back to Nakiri mansion.

Alice's mouth practically fell open and her face was lit crimson. WHAT DID HE JUST SAY! And how could he just say something like that in such a monotone voice!

Her heart started to beat uncontrollably and she stood there a bit shaking.

Hisako started to laugh behind Alice and when Alice shot her a glare, the pinkette returned with a playful wink.

"Seems like you also have much to learn about your own love life Alice-sama."

"I-I have nothing to learn! I got this under control! I'm not like my spineless cousin!" Alice proclaimed, through pure pride and embarrassment that she had been exposed. As much as she did put on, much like Erina, she knew nothing about love herself. She was more educated on it than Erina, but just like her cousin never tasted it. She then faced Ryõ and locked him in her sights.

"Ryõ!" She screamed and chased after the boy down the hill.

Said boy turned and saw her quickly approach him from behind, and for the first time ever, he smiled while not under the influence of his bandana. Not giving her a chance to make up too much ground, Ryõ then began to run as well, keeping the Danish beauty a few strides away from him.

He chuckled as Alice tried to catch him but eventually tired. Unlike her, Ryõ had the body of an athlete and sprinting barely even made him sweat.

Seeing the girl come to a complete stop, hands now on her thighs bent over gasping for air, Ryõ approached her and smirked.

"What?" He asked, feigning innocence.

Alice looked up at him and blushed fiercely.

"Meanie!"

Hisako now catching up with the two smiled warmly and shook her head at them, completely amused.

* * *

Megumi found herself in the gardens.

How she had gotten here, even she didn't know. After Hisako had consoled her, she had tried to do as the aid said and get some rest but the fresh sting of heartbreak had her restless. She couldn't thank Hisako enough for coming to her aid, but she just couldn't go to bed with such a heavy heart. Now sitting down by a group of her cabbage patches, she felt the leaves on the growing vegetable a sighed in content as it felt healthy and strong.

_At least her plants would always be by her side… _

Her mind then drifted back to Sõma.

She had always liked the fiery redhead… well that was not entirely true. Her first impressions of him were that an over-confident idiot that was going to get them both expelled. However, after her first interaction with him, she knew he was going to be someone special in her life.

_And he was someone special._

He gave her courage. Just watching him cook bestowed confidence in her. The way he handled a knife and commanded the kitchen wherever he was. Sõma was the living embodiment of conviction.

He taught her to never give up. When everything is against you, you can still make a good situation out of a rotting one. Like during the time when Shinomiya-sempai tried to have her expelled, but somehow they persevered.

He was her light on a gloomy day. He was her everything… and now he was to be someone else's ray of sunshine.

_And the part that pained her most was that she could do nothing about it. _

And even now, after she was one hundred percent sure she knew he liked another, she couldn't help but still have feelings for him. Tears started to fall slowly down, as Megumi was losing grips of her emotions.

She was a fool right? She was only inflicting more pain on herself for still liking him…

She hated herself. Why was she so weak? Why did she never confront him and tell him she liked him! She should have done it in their second year when she had him all to herself! She should have made her feelings known! Instead, now here she was crying her heart out to her plants of all things!

**WHY! WHY! WHY!**

Droplets were now something of the past, as a river of tears was streaming down Megumi's face.

She started thinking up scenarios like how could a girl like her, actually be with a guy like him? He was too good for her… he belonged with Erina…. Not some poor random girl from a local district…. She had no class, no lineage…

Of course he would like someone like Erina.

The navy haired girl then fell into a deeper depression, as she hated herself for even thinking such thoughts. She was never a vindictive person but right now… she felt some kind of animosity towards Erina. She had taken someone from her, and the pig-tailed girl was completely helpless to do anything about it.

In her self-loathing, Megumi had not noticed that a figure had cautiously made its way up behind her and placed a firm hand gently on her shoulders.

Startled, the feeble girl whipped her head around shocked. What graced her was the calming face of Hayama Akira, who looked at her with a slight bit of concern in his eye.

Shamed that she had been caught in such a low state, Megumi used her hands to rapidly wipe her face clean, not wanting the boy to see her in such a ridden state.

Hayama let Megumi compose herself and decided against trying to comfort her. Instead he took a seat beside her and reached out and felt the cabbage plant.

"You do amazing work in the gardens…" he began. "From the color of the leaves all the way down to the texture of the stem, these plants are well taken care of."

Megumi's tears and crying started to settle down as her feverish sobs now turned to uncontrolled hiccups. She forced herself to stop crying as the remaining tears dried themselves on her swollen cheeks.

"T-Thank you…" Megumi watched him as he analyzed her garden and there was a calm but slightly awkward silence that followed.

"I'm… I'm sorry that you seen me like this. I… I-" Megumi tried to find the right words to say but when Hayama looked at her, she froze as his Slytherin green eyes left her speechless.

"You shouldn't cry, Tadokoro Megumi…"

The girl's eyes widened at his directness, and she looked down clearly embarrassed.

"I-I didn't think anyone would find me out here… at this time of night." Hayama heard her mumble. "H-How, if you don't mind me asking… did you find me?"

He blinked emotionlessly at the hiccupping girl, seeing that at this point she was perfectly calmed down now, aside from a few stray hiccups. Reaching out his hand, he wiped away the residue of a dried tear on her face like it was the most natural thing in the world for him to do.

Megumi didn't even flinch at his actions, the way he moved; he made it feel so normal.

"My acute sense of smell… I know the scent of tears better than anything else…" He withdrew his hand from her tear-stained cheeks and looked back at her plants. "I just followed the scent… wondering whom it may belonged to."

Megumi's heart ached. Not for her own sake… but for Hayama.

_He knew the scent of tears better than anything else…_

Those words echoed in her mind… It only made her realize just how much more stupid she was. Here she was crying about a lost crush while Hayama, who she had come to find out had it the hardest of all her friends when they were younger, probably cried because of starvation, loneliness, and so much more.

"I-I'm so stupid!" Megumi wailed, her emotions starting to rise back up again. "I'm sorry… when you've had it so hard… here I am crying selfishly!" Megumi threw her head into her hands and started to weep again, her emotions getting the best of her. She just couldn't control herself. The state she was in, she was so fragile. "I'm such a fool…"

Hayama looked down at the broken girl, and placed a firm hand on her head. He stroked the top of her hair softly until her sobs once again quieted down.

Once he knew she was composed again, the silver haired boy began to speak.

"You are one of the most unselfish people I have ever met Tadokoro. I'm… I'm not sure why you would call yourself that. Even now, in your deepest sorrow, you think about me, and my past, and reflect that on yourself. I find you are too unselfish…" He then paused as he carefully thought out his next few words. "Being able to cry selfishly sometimes, isn't always a bad thing."

Megumi raised her head and looked at him, her golden orbs linking with his jade ones. Without a second thought, she lunged at him and wept into the boy's chest. Hayama at first was a bit taken back, but let the pigtailed teen do as she pleased. He placed a hand behind her back and rubbed softly as Megumi cried herself to sleep in his arms.

Watching her slumber for a few minutes, he couldn't help but let a small smile escape his features. She really did remind him of Jun so much. They shared too many characteristics…

Like he had done so many times with his former mentor, Akira picked up Megumi's small frame, and started to make his way back towards the Polar Stars.

However, he abruptly stopped, remembering before he parted with the crew to track down the scent of fresh tears, he remembered that Alice had ran off to find Erina. If the Danish troublemaker were to find the blonde, that would mean the Nakiri princess would be somewhere close by, maybe even already inside the dorm.

Akira was no fool. Everyone knew of Megumi's fondness of Sõma. He also noted how Sõma and Erina's relationship had changed since the start of their final year. He didn't say much, but he definitely kept his eyes open. He had already put the pieces together once he saw the girl out here in tears. He didn't know what specifically caused it, but he knew it had something to do with their dinner, and to do with Sõma and Erina.

If he was to take her inside, and she just so happened to wake up and see Sõma and Erina, it would probably cause her much heartache.

Someone as pure and innocent as her only deserves love, not pain. He looked down at her again, and eyed her slumbering form. He watched as the cool midnight breeze blew strands of her hair from her reddened face. He couldn't help but form a blush on his tanned features.

Akira sighed… here he was, finding himself falling for a girl who liked another. This was precisely what happened with his mentor, she could never fully get over her feelings for Jōichirō. And now the girl in his arms… scarred by another Yukihira man… was this cycle destined to repeat itself forever?

Akira looked up into the midnight sky with newfound determination. He was set to end it here. This cycle of pain and heartache would end now. Turning from the Polar Stars, he carried Megumi towards his apartment.

He didn't feel vengeful or anything. He knew the oblivious red head didn't mean to cause any pain to innocent girl below him. What he did feel however, was a new sense of purpose.

He had once again, found his reason to cook.

* * *

Erina wandered into the dining hall of the Polar Stars to find only Sõma cleaning up leftover dishes and cups from his little get-together. Everyone that lived in the Polar Stars seemed to have gone to bed or just randomly disappeared. She stood silently as she watched him pack up, but and took keen interest to the fact that after all his cleaning, and getting the place back in order, he still left a single covered plate on the table with the seat pulled out.

Sõma had been so caught up in his musings that he didn't even notice Erina in the room. He just picked up the last of all the remaining things and made his way into the kitchen to wash and clean the used dishes.

Erina watched him leave and then fully made her way into the dining hall, staring at the covered dish and pulled out chair before her.

She knew that the seat was for her… Even now, when the party was over, he was still expecting her.

Erina's heart panged. Why did she make him wait like this? She was so selfish. All this time she kept thinking about herself. How she felt and how he was making her feel… she never once thought about how _HE_ felt. How much confusion and pain _SHE_ was probably causing him, even though he lets on like nothing affected him.

The empty reserved seat reminded her of their yearly Moon Banquet Festival, where she would always leave a seat reserved for her idol Jōichirō. Even though every year he would never show up… it was still his special place. Looking at the seat before her, Erina clenched her fists and sat down. How could she do this to him? She of all people should know this feeling. Without hesitation, she lifted the tray before her and eyed the dish keenly.

Instantaneously after removing the cover of the dish, steam poured out from the plate, blinding her completely. Her sense of sight now clouded, Erina's sense of smell was the next awareness to be attacked. Unforgivingly, the strong aroma of eggs and spices consumed her. Her mouth watered a little just by smell, and she couldn't wait for the steam to disappear so she could see the source of such a tantalizing aroma. Slowly, the vapor thinned out to reveal what disappointingly, seemed like to Erina a very simple dish.

On the plate itself only sat two distinct items of importance. The first was a pair of thinly cut, long narrow slices of bread. The bread pieces didn't look too special, and held no particular treatment other than being toasted. Erina figured they were just there for presentation. What really caught her eye was what the two pieces of bread were laid next to, presumably the object of main interest.

There on the left of the plate, sat a small transparent bowl, maybe half the plate's size. In the bowl itself there were two sunny-side-up eggs, fused together by their egg whites. Inside the egg whites, Erina noticed pieces of chopped up mushrooms. They were chipped into very tiny pieces, and judging by their light brown texture and size, Erina pinpointed that they were cremini mushrooms. Upon the two fused eggs and mushrooms, Erina noted small pieces of stemmed spinach and freshly ground black pepper were sprinkled on top to give the combination taste. However what truly caught Erina's eye was what lied below the egg-mushroom-fusion.

Because of the transparency of the bowl, Erina could see that the eggs and pieces of mushrooms were lying upon a thin layer of some kind of cream. She had no idea what the purpose of that was but it surely piqued her interest. Picking up the nearby eating utensils, Erina cut out a small piece of the dish. Pulling it up by fork, she examined it more closely and the blonde noticed nothing out of the particular. How could a dish with such an amazing scent have such a bland appearance? With a shrug, she placed a piece of the dish in her mouth.

**BANG!**

It went completely dark. All the lights shut out in the dining room and everything around her disappeared. The only object that Erina could tell was remaining in the room was the chair she was sitting on, and that was only because she could tangibly feel it. Erina turned her head to and fro but could see nothing in the darkness.

"What in the world?" she mumbled.

"Nakiri…" An all too familiar voice whispered into her ear.

Erina's eyes jolted open and she flicked her head to the direction of the sound but saw nothing. Only complete darkness met her. There was no one there.

"Erina…" the voiced whispered again, a little more sultrier into her other ear.

The blonde jumped out of her seat and turned around, fully expecting to find Yukihira Sõma playing a prank on her, but there was no one there. She strained her eyes as hard as she could, but she saw nothing in the pitch-black darkness.

"Nakiri…" The voice teased again, this time sounding amused. It was like it was making fun of her. Erina glared at the darkness refusing to be scared by some stupid prank. She crossed her arms and attempted to sit back down on her chair but what met her behind was not the seat she was expecting, but the cold hard ground. She slammed her hands on the floor in frustration, embarrassed at her tumble.

Her chair was obviously now gone too.

"Yu-Yukihira! This is not funny!" She shouted out to no one in particular. She knew that silky smooth voice better than anyone.

She stood back up, dusted off her skirt, and started to march around the area with her hands tightly balled into fists.

"When I find you, I will kill you!" She yelled out.

No answer.

The voice didn't respond at her taunt. She was hoping it would. She would have been able to dart in that direction and find the red haired prankster. Erina grit her teeth and continued to march on, however she was slowly starting to realize she wasn't going anywhere. She walked in a single direction for over a hundred steps and she had still not bumped into a wall or anything! She could see nothing in front of her or behind her. It was like she was trapped in some dark box that was infinite in every direction.

"Yukihi-" Erina began to shout his name one more time. But before she could finish, a pair of all-too-familiar hands gripped her waist from behind and pulled her soft back against said boy's chest.

"Looking for me?" He placed his head at the crook of her head and squeezed her waist.

Erina's body turned to goo; her legs were completely gone from her. She was only standing by the sheer fact that he was holding her up by the waist.

Turning her head to look at him, the fierce blush on her features could not be held down. For some reason, even in the pitch-black darkness, she could see him.

"W-What are you doing! L-Let go of me!" She stumbled with her words and they barely sounded convincing at all.

He grinned up at her from the crook of her neck, as if his smile was the only answer she needed.

"No, I don't want to."

"W-What!" Erina didn't even know what to say. What kind of response was that! His rudeness and downright stubbornness caught her even more off guard. When the boy started to nuzzle into her neck, the blonde let out a gasp and bit her lip.

"S-Sõma-kun! P-Please…"

The boy stopped his loving gesture and looked up at her once more.

"Alright," he started. Erina looked at him gratefully, but when she saw the teasing glint in his eyes, she knew all hope was lost. "Admit my food is to your liking, and I'll let you go."

"N-Never!" Erina immediately shouted in defiance. She had not the strength before but as soon as he made his request she had found her resolve. She would never let him hear those words.

_Ever!_

"Hmm…" the boy hummed. "Well then, I guess I'll have to return the favor."

'_Favor? What favor?' _Erina thought.

Sõma directed his attention back to her neck and placed his mouth over her skin sending shocks down Erina's spine. He lightly pressured his teeth on her neck, teasingly applying and removing stress. He then licked her there, and Erina fought to not roll her eyes back.

Her chest started to rise and fall rapidly as her breathing started to get heavier and heavier.

"S-Sõma-kun!"

He teasingly licked her neck again.

"Admit it… Erina."

The trapped princess' hands gripped the boy's pants and squeezed on the soft fabric in frustration. She was completely helpless before him. Her resolve was strong but her body was weak.

"N-No! A-And d-don't call me by…" Her pleas were interrupted as another pleased gasp escaped her lips. She groaned internally as her body betrayed her once more. She was having a hard time fighting against his teasing mouth and it was only getting worse as he started to leave teasing bites trailing from the crook of her neck and making his way upwards.

Erina squirmed but could do nothing, as his grip around her was too tight. His teasing was leaving her way to weak and to make matters worse, his hold on her wasn't letting up. Now at her jaw, he placed soft kisses along her jawline, deciding to give that area some attention.

Erina squeezed her eyes shut. She was fighting hard to not let her head go blank. She couldn't focus. She couldn't move. Even with her eyes closed it made no difference… she already couldn't see anything aside from Sõma with her eyes opened.

He was now at her ear, and placed a soft kiss on her pinna.

"Admit. It. Erina." With every word he said, he continued to kiss the ring of her ear.

"Ahhh!" Erina gasped. His teasing and loving kisses were just too much. She couldn't take it any more. She was losing her mind. She would tell him! She would finally admit it!

"F-Fine! I-It's… It's…"

"It's what?"

The atmosphere had changed. Erina could no longer sense the warm heat of Sõma's chest against her back. She could no longer feel his lips on her ear or his strong hands wrapped around her waist possessively.

Forcing her eyes open, she realized she was back at the Polar Stars, still sitting at the table and Sõma's dish still in front of her. The boy was no longer behind her keeping her captive but in actuality just standing nonchalantly in front of her with a sly grin on his face.

"It's what Nakiri?" Sõma repeated. He was looking at her with such interest. Erina felt like if he looked at her anymore intently, he would burn a whole through her face. She swallowed hard, as the remaining remnants of his dish slipped down her throat. The boy made his way closer to her and placed a hand on the table as he leaned in closer to her.

"It's…" She began.

"It's?" Sõma pressed on, more than eager to hear her answer.

His face was so close to hers now. This was definitely like their first meeting. Everything had come full circle. This moment replicated one of her deepest fears; one that formed since she had found out he was accepted into Tõtsuki. That one day… he would actually make her say it. That he would truly get her to admit, that his cooking, _was_, by her standards and her godly tongue, more than acceptable.

Sõma watched her struggle and couldn't help but grin smugly. This was it. This was the moment where she would succumb to his cooking. Even though the years had passed, he had never forgotten his oath. And now finally, he would hear her say it. FINALLY, he would get to hear the words she should have said when they first met.

His grin intensified, if that was even humanely possible, as he remembered what he said to her the night before. Not only was he about to get _the_ Nakiri Erina, the most obstinate woman on the face of the Earth to admit that she approves of his cooking, but he also licked his lips in anticipation to the other reward from his declaration.

He was going to claim those stubborn her lips of hers ten-times over, and he couldn't wait. He leaned in as he waited for her; their noses were practically touching as his determined golden orbs stared down into her violet ones, filled with a mixture of all kinds of emotions. He couldn't tell what she held in them, but as soon as he started to get caught up in her eyes, noticed them hardened and turn into a glare.

"I-I-It's cold!" Erina blurted out. "It's been left out too long! What good chef serves their customer cold dishes!" She pushed her seat back trying to get away from how close he was and hopped out of her chair, her face aflame as she clenched her beating heart.

"Cold?" Sõma repeated. He was flabbergasted. Did she really just say that? Did she really just…

As he continued to think to himself, his shocked state calmed down as he regained his cool. He couldn't help but eventually chuckle at himself for being so naive. God, he should have expected this. He wasn't anticipating her to say that, but then again he should of known better. He knew how stubborn she could be. He let out a sigh and shot her a knowing smile.

"I guess it has been sitting there for a while…" the redhead started, standing up straightly now and putting his hands in his pockets.

"Yeah…" Erina looked down at her emptied plate, not sure of what to say. Was he really letting her off the hook? Did he actually accept her answer?

"Considering the fact that it was cold… I'm surprised you ate it all…" Sõma said a bit mischievously as he made his way slowly towards her.

_Crap!_

Erina blushed, embarrassed as she too realized she had finished his entire dish.

"The theme was egg, the first time we met right?" Sõma continued. He didn't wait for her to answer. "This is also an egg dish. It's known natively as Oeufs Cocotte Aux Girolles."

Erina noted he said the words in perfect French as he was now in front of her. She backed up trying to recreate the distance between them but bumped into a wall. Sõma took this opportunity to place is hands on either side of the wall, trapping her between them.

"Better known as Coddled Eggs with Chanterelles." He continued right where he left off like nothing happened. Not a single beat was skipped as he eyed her playfully.

Erina looked past him not wanting to meet his eyes, fearing that she would lose all resolve if she did. She saw the exit to the dining room was right behind him, and started to formulate a plan of escape. Sõma noticed her flickering gaze, and realized she was trying to plot a getaway. Deciding to remove all hope from her, he pressed his body up against her, placing himself between her legs, effectively pinning her to the wall. There was nowhere to go now unless she was a ghost. The only option was through him. He was tired of her always trying to avoid him. He knew if he gave her any room to escape, she would take it.

"I learned it while working under Shinomiya-senpai. It's a dish that makes the maximum use of garlic, using it in three different ways to build flavor. Can you tell in which ways I used it? God's Tongue?"

Erina squirmed under his gaze and his questions. She had no idea in what ways he made use of the garlic. She blanked out as soon as she put it in her mouth. She didn't even realize she even finished the darn thing let alone know what it tasted like! The first time she ate something of his she had the same initial reaction. She just completely forgot to taste it. Damn him to hell!

And to even make matters worse, all she could think about was the way his body was pressed up against her and his teasing usage of her title. She couldn't even remember a time he ever called her "God's Tongue." So why now?

"I… uhhh…"

Sõma smirked. He knew it. She liked it. Whether or not she would admit it… well that was probably a battle fought for another day. Completely closing the gap between them, his body was fully pressed up against hers now and his face was merely inches apart.

"Why won't you admit it Erina?" he said softly to her. "We both know you like it…"

He smiled down at her predatorily. Though trapped, and flustered, Erina regained some of her composure and looked at him in defiance. Though she was sure it was to no avail as the fierce blush on her face was thwarting away any fearsome look she could muster.

"N-Never…" Erina eyed him and gripped the hem of her skirt to reassure herself. "I'll never admit your cooking is good."

Thank god for her realistic fantasy beforehand, or else she was sure she would have given in already. Her little fantasy had prepped her, made her feel more prepared.

Truth be told, Erina had already come to terms with the fact that his cooking was beyond anyone's she's ever tasted. However while musing to herself today, before she even made her way to the Polar Stars, she had come to a decision.

_She would never tell him it's good._

For a very obvious, and simple reason. All throughout her life, she was the one described by everyone around her as the genius chef with a limitless possibility. She was the future diamond ready to be cut and shaped. She was the one said to be the next person to start a revolution in the cooking world.

However… who said there couldn't be another?

The man before her, from their years so far together… she had seen rapid growth. He just continued to excel, at an unstoppable rate. Always getting better, day after day, year after year. What was his drive? What made him so? When they first met, she wanted nothing to do with him. All she wanted was to remove him from her sanctuary. But he kept on fighting back, every time coming back stronger…

Erina came to the conclusion it was she. She was his drive. She was his goal. It is not she with the limitless possibility. It was he. And she feared if she ever revealed that his cooking pleased her, his growth would come to a stop. And even more scarier, she feared he would lose interest in her.

For those reasons, she would never tell him the words he so desperately wants to here. Not now, not ever. For as long as she denies him this… he will continue to grow.

"You can however…" Erina looked him dead in eyes, as golden orbs clashed with violet ones. "Make another attempt…" she mumbled. Her heart was beating out of her chest as she found the courage to say those words. She had no idea what made her feel a bit daring, but she liked the thrill it sent through her. Everything about this man… she liked it.

"Another attempt huh? Well… I kind of ran out of ingredients." Sõma then cocked his head to the side and eyed her roguishly. "If I can't please those lips with my cooking… then for the time being, I'll guess I'll have to find another way…"

Erina already knew what he was referring to. Her legs were complete mush at this point. Her innocent heart practically jumped with joy at his words but her mind was always the faster one. Normally thankfully so but right now she just wanted him to kiss her!

"B-But… I thought you said… only if you make me say, it's… g-good?" She gripped the ends of her skirt tighter, in complete nervousness. Her breathing now completely irregular, as hot puffs of steam escaped her lips onto his face.

Sõma teasingly moved his lips onto hers ever so lightly. Erina could practically feel the soft skin of his lips on hers, but at the slightest form of contact, he moved past her mouth, much to Erina's obvious displeasure.

Stopping at her ear, he whispered, "I lied."

Erina let out a gasp, as his words tickled her ear and sent shocks down her chest and legs. The ever so honest Sõma… he could actually tell a lie? Not that she cared. This was a lie she wouldn't mind hearing over and over again.

Pulling back from her ear, Sõma captured her lips passionately. Erina mewled as she melted under his kiss, her hands now moving from the tips of her skirt to gripping his shoulders. She unconsciously found herself in a tip-toed position, to instinctively give herself a little bit more height to deepen their kiss. Sõma moved his hands from the wall and wrapped them around her slim waist, pulling her tighter into him.

He continued to kiss her for a few more moments, and then broke their kiss in need of air. He left Erina completely flushed, with heavy hot breaths escaping her. She bit her lower lip in frustration, not wanting the kiss to end. If anything, she wanted him to live up to his promise, and kiss her unconscious!

"One day, I will make you admit it… Erina."

The blonde wrapped up in his arms, smiled nervously at him but leaned back into the boy so now their foreheads were touching.

"K-Keep trying… Sõma-kun."

The boy smiled at her coyness, and rubbed his nose against hers playfully.

"You may be a genius cook Nakiri, but you sure are unintelligible when it comes to love…"

Erina eyes hardened and blew on his face as a form of retaliation, much to the boy's amusement, embarrassed that he just continued to tease her about her lack of knowledge on the subject. How he was so comfortable right now… Just yesterday afternoon he had no idea what love was and then hours later he was kissing her unconscious and pinning her to walls like some actor in a romance movie. She would have to get to the bottom of that story another day. For now, she was just glad he was hers.

"Matters of the heart… I do not know," Erina answered truthfully.

"Me either… to be honest, I'm just going on instinct… let's find out together…"

If Erina's heart was beating before, it exploded now. Her whole core was on fire, as her own form of instinct took over. She didn't even wait for him to make the first move like always. Instead, she captured his lips in a dominant fashion, creating a kiss of her own.

Even though her kiss was dominant, at her core she was the embodiment of antsy, anxious, jumpy, and all the other synonyms for words similar to nervous. She was completely unsure of what the future would carve.

But when the boy squeezed her waist firmly, all anxiety was cast aside.

_If this was the start to their third year… she couldn't imagine what the end would be like._

_FIN._

* * *

Edit: 7.2 12:39 AM 11/16/15

Thank you once again Kusabi! I appreciate all you edits. I am grateful! I 'm glad you enjoyed the ride.

And there you have it! The final chapter of Year Three! OMG it's been a long time coming. Honestly… this was the first Shokugeki Fanfic on this site. And I'm glad I can finally put an ending on it.

I know some might not want it to end… however, for the sake of not drawing it on, I ended it here. I could of done more, but then the story would lose its purpose.

I tried to tie up as many loose ends as I could. I know I didn't delve much into the Takumi Ikumi pair, the Ryõ Alice pair, and the Megumi Akira pair. I know… it might be a bit rushed. In my next story, I will have everything planned out. It will be %100 better but for now, I wish you all enjoyed this one.

Also don't feel like this is the end of me friends. I am thinking up another Shokugeki Story. I have not decided on a set plot yet but I will assure you, that I am working on another chapter story starring our favorite duo. In what universe, setting, etc… I'm not 100% sure yet, but I already have three different plots written. I will sit, and think about which one, and then choose.

I want to send a **BIG THANK YOU** to every person that has read this story! You are all very special to me, and an even bigger one to all who reviewed it and stayed with me over the years. It's been fun. You guys are absolutely amazing.

I NEVER IN MY LIFE expected such a reaction to the last chapter. **So many reviews! I think I got over 100 just on that chapter alone! **If I were to respond to them all… we would be here for days. It would just be too much. But I want you all to know I read them all. I smiled and felt so special. You all said so many kind things, and I thank you all for that.

Now I leave you with this, a special ending quote from one of my favorite anime's of old. Who can guess where the signoff below is from? But don't be glad if you could. It only means you're probably in your early twenties like I am ;( NO! We're getting old! Someone stop time! Kidding hehe…

See You Space Cowboy!


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